Read online: https://knowledgesuccess.org/connecting-the-dots/
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We're pleased to share Connecting the Dots between Evidence and Experience: Impact of COVID-19 on Family Planning in Africa and Asia, an interactive site that displays the effects of COVID-19 on family planning use and programs during the first year of the pandemic.
We reviewed many data sources, working in partnership with Performance Monitoring for Action (PMA). Our analysis shows that the impacts of COVID-19 on family planning use and programs may not have been as severe as originally feared.
On Connecting the Dots, you can manipulate interactive charts to see key family planning indicators in seven countries and how they relate to the impact of stay-at-home restrictions and rising COVID-19 cases.
Additionally you can:
Download a data sheet to explore subgroup differences among women.
Access case studies of successful program adaptations from Family Planning Association of Nepal, West Africa Breakthrough ACTION (Côte d’Ivoire), and Madagascar Ministry of Health in collaboration with DMPA-SC Access Collaborative.
Read answers to key questions that will help programs plan for later in the pandemic and future pandemics or crises.
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'Although the pandemic has resulted in many disruptions to health services, including family planning (FP) services, it has also led to some positive adaptations to FP policies, programs, and services around the world that could be applied in other contexts—and that could have lasting implications beyond the pandemic era. In April 2020, UNFPA estimated that if COVID-19-related disruptions in health services continued for 6 months, 7 million unintended pregnancies could occur. One year into the pandemic, estimates put the figure closer to 1.4 million. While this number is still troubling, it indicates that the impacts of COVID-19 on unintended pregnancy during the first year of the pandemic may not have been as dire as originally feared.'
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Neil Pakenham-Walsh, Global Coordinator HIFA, www.hifa.org neil@hifa.org
