Matters on family planning will be the major issue when policymakers, donors, and advocates from around the world gather on Tuesday morning at the Family Planning Summit in London, UK.
They will discuss efforts to reach the world’s Family Planning 2020 goals and ensure that more women and girls around the world are able to plan their families and their futures.
Family planning is a best-buy in global development. When women and girls have access to family planning, they are able to complete their education, create or seize better economic opportunities, and fulfil their full potential – in short, entire families, communities and nations benefit.
PREMIUM TIMES brings you live updates of the event.
9.23am: Melinda Gates speaks:
“Access to contraceptives changes everything.
Contraceptives are one of the greatest anti-pverty innovations in the world.”
“(Late) Babatunde (Osotimehin) taught me so much.”
“I am deeply troubled, as I’m sure you are, by the Trump administration’s budget cut.”
“One in 5 girls in developing countries becomes pregranant before the age of 18.”
9.25am Melinda Gates concludes her speech.
9.26am: Nigeria’s Amina Mohammed,UN Deputy Secretary General, joins a panel for further discussion.
9.29am: Achieveing SDGs will be better met when reproductive health and family planning issues are well understood and taken by women and girls.
Family planning matters are essential and enshrined in SDGs 3 and 5 – Amina Mohammed
9.35am: We still face significant funding gaps to resolve global family planning issues – Amina Mohammed
9.38am: Amina Mohammed concludes her speech by calling for family planning calls to be taken to the every disadvantaged girl in the world.
9.39am: A minute of silence is held for late Babatunde Osotimehin, the UNFPA boss.
9.40am: Dr. Tedros, the new head of WHO, commences his speech.
9.42am: Family planning leads to economic and social empowerment for women and girls – Tedros
9.44am: WHO head, Tedros Adhanom, concludes his speech
9.51am: “To get there, we must empower women and involve men” – a Canadian official says.
9:52am: You can count on Canada to do its part, the Canadian official says
10.08am: Dr. Jane Aceng, Ugandan minister of health, speaks
10.10am: Ugandan President in 2012 committed $5m for the next five years for family planning – Dr Jayne
10.13am: Dr. Aceng lists the efforts Uganda is making to meet family planning targets, lists challenges including 25 per cent teenage pregnancy.
Dr. Jane Aceng, Ugandan Minister of Health
10.14am: Uganda recommits to allocate $5m for the next five years for family planning matters including drugs – Dr. Aceng
10.28am: This is the first time in decades that new technology is introduced to health in preventing pregnancy and safe abortions.
10.31am: The Bangladesh Minister of Health takes the floor, Zahid Maleque, takes the floor.
10.35am: Dr. Maleque highlighted the successes of Bangladesh in dealing with family planning matters.
10.46am: Indian – Minister of health, Indian fertility rate has declined from 2.5 to 2.2. Under age marriage in Indian crashed from 47 percent to 28 percent.
Minister Nora, Somalia, Somali government has sent a law on early marriage and working with religious leaders and using Islam as an entry point to educate its population on maternal health campaign and outreach to increase contraceptive usage among refuges and returnee.
10.57am: Denmark- 65 million people are displaced, and we are using our humanitarian services to make sure people have access to family planning as such in relation to this summit we are pledging $15 million to cover UNFPA supplies and IPPF, on ground and hopefully we will meet millions of girls who needs contraception.
10.59am: A woman in Gaza refugee camp said she is afraid of pregnancy as it is like an octopus, and drag me towards the grave.
11.08am: Deputy foreign minister Norway, it is the priority of the Norway government to promote sexual and humanity right. Being able to to chose, with whom, if and when to get pregnant is a human right and no one must be left behind and where to start is the humanitarian settings.
11.12am: Norway will donate $90 million dollars to direct supplies in UNFPA. Norway will expand on comprehensive live educate on sexuality as young people are key to our future.
11.14am: Norway also pledges to support civil society SRHR with $5omln up to 2020.
11.18am: India- We have to know that adolescents are human beings and the thing about sex, there is a need to give them education on contraceptive and how to get them . Many girls don’t have the power to decide about the type of contraceptive, we need to stand up and fight for the common.
11.23am: We cant decrease teenage pregnancy without talking to the teenage themselves. we have to make sure we talk to this children or else we are not getting anywhere. we have to incorporate religious leaders. we have a long way to in providing comprehensive health education.
11.27am: Mozambique Minister Abdula, we are committed to providing family health care comprehensive education in all secondary schools.We cant decrease teenage pregnancy without talking to the teenage themselves. we have to make sure we talk to this children or else we are not getting anywhere. we have to incorporate religious leaders. we have a long way to in providing comprehensive health education.
11.44am: Uganda-She decides, helping women have a voice to decide on their sexuality. It is very crucial for boys and girls to decide on what to do with their lives, when to marry, when to give birth, what type of contraceptive she want to use and do to get it, women needs to be empowered and the countries need to fight against the fears of women on making sexuality issue, she should be able to decide. She decides only if and only one decides.
11.51am: Minister Ireland. She decides is a global movement, brings in young people to campaign and support promoting women sexuality and contraceptive usage is very impressive. Every donation is welcome, we need to make up for the $6 million shortfall from the US donation.
Many countries can still do more in getting domestic resources for the campaign. governments should look into their budgets to re prioritize as there is a need to look for more domestic funding. There is still a need to spread the message on sexuality education and rights. Many counties are yet to be aware of the necessary for the laws to protect the right of women and girls in deciding their sexual fate.
12.01pm: Chad-Minister of health, She Decides in Chad – She is very moved to see many men and women come together for She Decides, since Brussels in March last year, many things has happen to Chad. What will the world be without women, I cannot imagine a world without women, how can we help the world if the women cannot decide. Nobody has the right to to decide for you, you have to decide, for everyone to decide, and there are conditions, first is to have autonomy, you cannot depend on a man if you want to decide.
Education is the key, I have a privilege to be educate and am educating my girls.
12.12pm: Johanna-Philippians, youth advocate since sixteen, having a best friend who is HIV positive and a cousin who was raped at sixteen, and does not have the choice of deciding. I have four cousins who were pregnant at teen age and could not do anything about it.
Out of 10 pregnancies in the Philippians are teenage pregnancy and this would not have been an issue if the can decide for themselves and not their families deciding for them. Am not one because I had information and privilege to make sane choices.
There is a Trump in every country promoting patriarchy and that is it is hard to advice young women because of the fear of every church men. Girls needs to be able to decide for themselves on their bodies, who and when she wants to have sex and who she wants to do it with and how many children she wants to have. Access is a must for all girls when she decides, we need access to education, information and supplies because a girl can, should and will decide.
12.21pm: Rwanda – 66 percent of health workers talking care of women in Rwanda are women, 64 percent of people in parliament are women, all these are translating into positive policies for women. every offices when the go to the Parliament to defend their budget they must show what percentage affects women. We are in full support of the She Decides.
12.25pm: There are still many girls and women who are left behind especially those who are HIV positive and with very diversity. We must not leave behind women in their diversity because they have a right to enjoy their sexuality and human right.