Along with the World Health Organization (WHO) Medical eligibility criteria for contraceptive use, this is one of two evidence-based guidance documents of the WHO’s initiative to develop and implement family planning guidelines for national programs. This document provides guidance for how to use contraceptive methods safely and effectively once they are deemed to be medically appropriate. Safety considerations include common barriers to safe, correct and consistent use of contraception and the benefits of preventing unintended or unwanted pregnancy.

Along with the World Health Organization (WHO) Selected practice recommendations for contraceptive use this is one of two evidence-based guidance documents of the WHO’s initiative to develop and implement family planning guidelines for national programs. This publication provides guidance to national family planning and reproductive health programs in the preparation of guidelines for the delivery of contraceptive services. The guide provides information on the safety and use of intramuscular and subcutaneous DMPA.

The Product Registration Toolkit helps guide the process of registering health products, like contraceptives, in low- and middle-income countries. The toolkit is a digital collection of adaptable, downloadable resources including:

• A primer on the basics of product registration
• A regulatory pathway decision tree
• Checklists for various stages of the registration process
• Tools to evaluate and track your registration application
• Templates of commonly required documents
• Quick reference glossary

All toolkit resources are available in English and French, with the Product Registration Basics guide in English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish.

To facilitate decision-making around the introduction and scale-up of contraceptive technologies, the Expanding Effective Contraceptive Options (EECO) project, led by WCG Cares in partnership with PSI, and USAID’s Center for Innovation and Impact teamed up to create the Contraceptive Innovation Index. On January 25, 2023, EECO and USAID hosted a webinar on the development and use of this tool; the webinar slides and recording are linked below.

A new analysis of challenges and opportunities

Shaping Equitable Market Access for Reproductive Health (SEMA Reproductive Health) hosted a September 29 webinar to shed light on Dalberg Advisors’ analysis of the challenges low and middle-income countries face in procuring sexual and reproductive health (SRH) goods. Panelists shared their experiences overcoming challenges to sustainable SRH markets in their respective countries. The webinar recording, Q&A, and resources are available online.

Results 4 Informed Choice is a resource for HIV and family planning program implementers, government representatives, advocates and journalists as they respond to the results from the Evidence for Contraceptive Options and HIV Outcomes (ECHO) trial.

The trial results, released June 13, 2019, showed that none of the three contraceptive methods in the trial increased the risk of HIV acquisition. Other findings, including high HIV incidence across the study arms and broad acceptability and effectiveness of the contraceptive methods, are a call to action for greater attention to and investment in women’s health, HIV prevention and contraceptive choice. Full findings from the study can be found in the Lancet article.

The tools, resources and data are intended to help stakeholders plan and execute their response so that women have all the information they need to make an informed choice in adopting and using a contraceptive method and protecting themselves from HIV.

This report presents an in-depth analysis of Burkina Faso’s policies, regulations, and guidelines, based on an extensive document review followed by key informant interviews. The findings are organized by select family planning methods, including voluntary surgical contraception, implants, injectables, and pills. The report also includes a section describing COVID-19’s effect on task sharing and self-care policies. The authors recommend policy and regulatory revisions and actions to further improve the country’s family planning and regulatory environment and scale implementation of the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines and note that the Burkina Faso experience may serve as evidence when the WHO next updates its task sharing guidance.

Expanding access to contraceptive methods through the private sector and community-based sources—which includes task sharing—is an important strategy to help achieve national family planning and development goals and, in particular, aims to reduce barriers to access for youth, lower-income, and other marginalized groups. Private sector pharmacies and drug shops are often the first line of health care in low- and middle-income countries, particularly for many underserved populations and especially in rural areas that have very few private or public clinics. While there are differences between pharmacies and drug shops, there are also common issues around implementation and impact. For both, training and support can improve and expand the range and quality of services they offer and thereby increase access and choice for women.

As part of the Global Health Science and Practice (GHTechX) conference, CHAI, FHI 360, PATH, the Population Council, PSI, and WCG hosted an April 22, 2021 session to synthesize lessons learned across contraceptive introduction of implants, DMPA-SC self-injection, hormonal IUS and other methods. During the session, experts from Kenya, Madagascar, Uganda, and the United States outlined essential steps for the process of contraceptive product introduction, described common challenges, and shared tools and approaches based on experiences with the three methods. Session slides are available below. To watch the recording of this and many other sessions, register for free on the GHTechX website.

The Guttmacher Institute’s Adding It Up study examines the need for, impact of and cost of fully investing in sexual and reproductive health care—services that together ensure people can decide whether and when to have children, experience safe pregnancy and delivery, have healthy newborns, and have a safe and satisfying sexual life. The estimates pertain to women of reproductive age (15–49) in 132 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) in 2019; they cover the following services: modern contraception, maternal and newborn care, abortion care, and treatment for the major curable STIs.