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Dr. Jim Shelton's Pearls "Pearl" for the week of January 6, 2006

Reasons for FP Success In Malawi

A while back you noted the successful programming in Malawi, where modern method contraceptive prevalence increased from 7.4% in 1992 to 26.1% in 2000, despite a predominantly rural population and desperately high poverty. Can you please provide some insights to explain this success?

Yes. The "Repositioning Family Planning" initiative has conducted some intensive country "look back" analyses on selected programs in Africa. Here are the key factors for success that I see from the Malawi report:

1. State-of-the-art service guidelines and clinical practices based on international consensus to improve quality and decrease medical barriers to access.
2. A positive policy and leadership environment from the government.
3. A strong NGO presence that not only provided significant services but technical leadership as well.
4. An active CBD program which provided services and, probably more importantly, helped legitimatize and broadly disseminate information on family planning.
5. A vigorous communication component that used multiple channels with key messages developed in consultation with communities.
6. Delegation of service provision duties to a variety of properly trained frontline service provider cadres.
7. An effective commodity logistics system including support for long-term and permanent methods.

References:

Solo J, Jacobstein R, and Malema D. 2005. Repositioning family planning—Malawi case study: Choice, not chance. New York: The ACQUIRE Project/EngenderHealth.

Malarcher S. Family Planning Success Stories in Sub-Saharan Africa. Global Health Technical Briefs, No. 21, December 2005.

The "Pearls" offer answers to commonly asked questions about family planning. These "Pearls" are prepared by Dr. James D. Shelton, Senior Medical Scientist, Office of Population, United States Agency for International Development (USAID)

Disclaimer: The information provided on this web site is not official U.S. Government information and does not represent the views or positions of the U.S. Agency for International Development, the U.S. Government or The Johns Hopkins University.