Health
DR Natalia Kanem, the Executive Director, UN Population Fund (UNFPA), has called for women’s freedom to make informed choices about their Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights (SRHS) to engender healthy and productive societies.
She made the call in a statement issued to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja by Hajiya Kori Habib, the Media Associate of UNFPA on the occasion of the 2021 World Population Day (WPD).
WPD is annually celebrated on July 11 to draw attention to the issue of rising population across the globe, and to bring to the fore, the reproductive health problems of communities as leading cause of ill health and death of pregnant women worldwide.
The day has “Rights and Choices are the Answer: whether baby boom or bust, the solution lies in prioritising Reproductive Health and Rights of All” as its theme for 2021.
The UNFPA executive director, therefore, emphasised the imperatives of providing women access to Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) services to support their choices.
She said “what leads to healthy and productive societies is when women can make informed choices about their sexual and reproductive health, and when they have access to services to support their choices.
“A woman who has control over her body gains not only in terms of autonomy, but also through advances in health and education, income and safety. She is more likely to thrive, and so is her family.”
She warned that hindrances to women’s access to SRHS was not only alarming but violation of human rights.
“What should cause alarm is when women cannot exercise their sexual and reproductive rights and choices – whether because health services are interrupted or gender discrimination prevents them from making decisions about accessing healthcare or using contraception.”
Kanem, who attributed the disruption of women’s Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights (SRHR) services in more than one year to the COVID-19 pandemic, added that the consequences of the disruption were many.
She said “for some, it has led to postponing childbearing, while for others, disruptions in healthcare led to unintended pregnancies.”
She affirmed that the world had yet to get full picture of the impact of COVID-19 on fertility, saying the trends had provoked alarmist concerns about baby booms or busts.
Kanem said that COVID-19 had laid bare stark inequalities and weaknesses in healthcare systems within and among countries.
She explained that the health crisis caused many overstretched health systems to scale back sexual and reproductive health services, noting that “while these services are a human right, they have been shunted aside in favour of more ‘pressing’ concerns.
“And amid economic pressures and budget cuts, there is a real risk that some countries may fail to restore these services.”
The UNFPA boss, therefore, called for synergy on the occasion of the World Population Day to close the gaps, saying sexual and reproductive health services were essential.
She added that “even if health systems are understandably strained, these services cannot wait.
“Any further delays will curtail the health and well-being of women and girls, consequences that can last a lifetime.
“Let us work together to uphold the right to decide when and if to have a family and let us stand up for the rights and choices of all women and girls.” (NAN)
– July 11, 2021 @ 08:49 GMT |
Tags: WPD: UNFPA drums support for women to make informed SRHR choices
