Improved access to family planning in Africa will lead to economic development

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Apr 4 2012

Melinda Gates of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation writes in an opinion piece in Nigeria's Vanguard, "My top priority as a co-chair of the foundation I run with my husband is making sure that all families have access to safe and effective contraception tools that empower them to make a decision about what's best for them and their family. And that means encouraging aid donors and governments here in Nigeria and across Africa to make family planning a priority." Improved access to modern methods of contraception and child spacing would save millions of lives, "[b]ut family planning doesn't just save lives; it also makes life better for families and communities, becoming a key driver of economic development," Gates continues.

"When families in Nigeria and across sub-Saharan Africa are given the opportunity to make [family planning] decisions, it will contribute to a virtuous cycle of development in many African communities," Gates writes, concluding, "A relatively small and extremely cost-effective investment will help families bring every good thing to their children. It is time for governments to make that investment" (4/3).

This article was reprinted from kaiserhealthnews.org with permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Kaiser Health News, an editorially independent news service, is a program of the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonpartisan health care policy research organization unaffiliated with Kaiser Permanente.

Posted in: Healthcare News

Tags: Children, Contraception, Health Care, Research

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Article reflective of American Supremist

Maura Parker says:

May 5, 2012 at 1:20 PM

I'm sure Melinda Gates has all good intentions in mind,from the eyes of American culture that is.  However,the embarrassing pomposity of tone in this article reflects the limited real "big picture" - or global if you will.  It is difficult to find evidence supporting her concept that family planning by way of contraception will  "contribute to a virtuous cycle of development in many African communities".

In fact, the increase in "family planning" in the US has proven a corresponding increase in the incidence of STD's, premarital intercourse, unwed pregnancy, pre-marital cohabition and abortion all of which have been linked to  physical and psychological health problems.  Is this virtuous?

In this, Africans have alot more going for them than all the misguided money and American know-how of Melinda and Bill Gates.  Perhaps the Gates' generosity would be better spent supporting family male/fatherhood roles. Through education and encouragement, African American models such as Dr. Ben Carson or Dr. Martin Luther King as well as many others can serve as real change in male role responsibility which can be found lacking in African society often due to economic, traditional, tribal or other cultural influence.

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