Focus on men in family planning programs

Scott Radloff, director of the Office of Population and Reproductive Health, writes about involving men in family planning on USAID's "Impact Blog." He writes: "Involving men in international family planning programs is an uphill battle. There is a lack of information among men on the importance of delaying first birth, of spacing births, and of avoiding high parity births for the health of the woman and the child. ... Men play an essential role as they are the gatekeepers in many countries to what women can and cannot do: whether women can use contraception or whether family resources should go to pay for other methods." Radloff adds, "[W]hile we have seen improvements, there is still much work to be done" (6/18).