Family planning is one aspect of the targets around universal access to sexual and reproductive health found in the SDGs (3.7 and 5.6). If your country is a FP2020 focus country or commitment maker, you can leverage the SDGs as a way of increasing the political priority of family planning, as well as ensuring the two SDG targets are being fulfilled. You can also use the Costed Implementation Plans (CIPs) – multi-year roadmaps designed to help governments achieve family planning goals – to strengthen your advocacy for the implementation of both the SDG and FP2020 commitments.

The world is facing a contraceptive funding crisis. Sufficient investment in contraception is not being prioritized at the global, national and subnational level. National and subnational governments need to prioritise family planning by allocating dedicated funds for contraceptive commodities. This discussion paper highlights contraceptive commodity security concerns in FP2020 countries in East Africa that will likely experience a reduction in global funding support for contraception from 2016 to 2020.

23-year-old Jane Atenyo Franca is a mother of two. She got pregnant at school when she was 17. Her boyfriend left her and she was forced to drop out of education. She later married someone else who already had two wives but left him after suffering multiple miscarriages. She has since married again and had a second child. She learnt about RHU’s Gulu Clinic after attending a health forum that the clinic had organised in her village.   “They talked about family planning, HIV, and they talked about very many diseases. “I decided to come back for family planning. I came back with my husband and we had counselling together. We agreed to go for the implant method.   “My husband was initially worried about being seen by other people. He was worried that people might think we had a sexually transmitted disease but I talked to him about reproductive health and about the importance of not having too many children. “I am glad that we have been able to space the number of children we have. “Family planning has helped me a lot. Some of my friends have had many children and they seem old and tired. I am not growing old, I am fresh. “Some people used to say that you would bleed until you die with an implant but there is nothing wrong with me: I am free and fresh.” Atenyo Franca Jane said she now goes to the clinic for a range of services. “I am back today because I have pain in my abdomen. I also have a swollen foot.” She said she would recommend RHU and Gulu Clinic to all her friends because the staff were friendly, welcoming and gave good advice. Follow a day in the life of our team and clients in Gulu, Uganda 07:00 08:00 9:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 22:00 Prev Next 7am: The team prepare for the long day ahead "Every year tens of thousands of Ugandans come to our clinic. Everyone is welcome. Here are just a few of the people that we served in one day last month." READ MORE 8am: Nancy, 19, becomes a volunteer "I was suffering but when I came here, I was treated and I got better. Now I'm inspired to volunteer here" READ MORE 9am: Monica, 25, a sex worker's story "I am sex working. I came here for Hepatitis B testing and also counselling. I have so many personal problems, but here….they’re so caring." READ MORE 10am: Jane, 23, saved by family planning "After multiple miscarriages, family planning here has helped me a lot. I'm glad we've been able to space the number of children we've had. I am not growing old, I am fresh." READ MORE 11am: Vicky, handling disabilities "I'm deaf so accessing services is hard, but here they really try to speak in sign language." READ MORE 12pm: Dorcus, first time patient "This is the first time I've ever come here, I like the service. They give good counselling so I recommend coming." READ MORE 1pm: Christine, 45, a grandmother's tale of living with HIV "I am living with HIV and had HPV. They treated me and now I'm free of cervical cancer." READ MORE 2pm: Lilian, struggling mother of six with sickle cell " I have sickle cell disease and so do all my children. I want to have my tube removed so that I don't get pregnant again but I don't know if my husband will allow it." READ MORE 3pm: Brenda and Francis get fertility treatments "Fertility treatment is a sensitive issue in Uganda but they help us a lot and we get proper treatment." READ MORE 4pm: Joyce, 25, repected regardless of her disability "I realised that at this place they don't segregate. Us people with disabilities have challenges at the main hospitals. You go there, people around look at you as if you are not a human being and you don't fall sick." READ MORE 5pm: Mobile clinic provides outreach services to remote villages "Our outreach to remote communities is a 'one-stop-centre'. We give family planning, vaccines for HPV, malaria, and Hepatitis B, HIV testing and more." READ MORE 22pm: Still giving the last client our very best "Together, we have great teamwork. Sometimes we're still working up to 10pm because we never chase out our clients. We’ll never close the place when we have a client inside. People come when they have no hope." READ MORE

Dorcas Lanyero is a married teacher who lives near to the Gulu Clinic but this is the first time she has ever been for treatment. She found out about RHU on the radio and through hearing her friends talking about the Gulu Clinic. “I came because I wasn’t feeling well, I was feeling some pain in my abdomen. They helped me, they tested me and took me for a scan. I have some infection so they have given me medicine.  “I was so happy that they welcomed me and they served me well, the four different doctors and nurse talked to me well, they gave me all the services and now I am getting treatment,” she said. Dorcas said she had been told to come back for another check-up in one month and to get family planning too. “I would definitely recommend this clinic to other people. I have seen the environment and people working here are so friendly. They give you treatment and counselling.” Follow a day in the life of our team and clients in Gulu, Uganda 07:00 08:00 9:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 22:00 Prev Next 7am: The team prepare for the long day ahead "Every year tens of thousands of Ugandans come to our clinic. Everyone is welcome. Here are just a few of the people that we served in one day last month." READ MORE 8am: Nancy, 19, becomes a volunteer "I was suffering but when I came here, I was treated and I got better. Now I'm inspired to volunteer here" READ MORE 9am: Monica, 25, a sex worker's story "I am sex working. I came here for Hepatitis B testing and also counselling. I have so many personal problems, but here….they’re so caring." READ MORE 10am: Jane, 23, saved by family planning "After multiple miscarriages, family planning here has helped me a lot. I'm glad we've been able to space the number of children we've had. I am not growing old, I am fresh." READ MORE 11am: Vicky, handling disabilities "I'm deaf so accessing services is hard, but here they really try to speak in sign language." READ MORE 12pm: Dorcus, first time patient "This is the first time I've ever come here, I like the service. They give good counselling so I recommend coming." READ MORE 1pm: Christine, 45, a grandmother's tale of living with HIV "I am living with HIV and had HPV. They treated me and now I'm free of cervical cancer." READ MORE 2pm: Lilian, struggling mother of six with sickle cell " I have sickle cell disease and so do all my children. I want to have my tube removed so that I don't get pregnant again but I don't know if my husband will allow it." READ MORE 3pm: Brenda and Francis get fertility treatments "Fertility treatment is a sensitive issue in Uganda but they help us a lot and we get proper treatment." READ MORE 4pm: Joyce, 25, repected regardless of her disability "I realised that at this place they don't segregate. Us people with disabilities have challenges at the main hospitals. You go there, people around look at you as if you are not a human being and you don't fall sick." READ MORE 5pm: Mobile clinic provides outreach services to remote villages "Our outreach to remote communities is a 'one-stop-centre'. We give family planning, vaccines for HPV, malaria, and Hepatitis B, HIV testing and more." READ MORE 22pm: Still giving the last client our very best "Together, we have great teamwork. Sometimes we're still working up to 10pm because we never chase out our clients. We’ll never close the place when we have a client inside. People come when they have no hope." READ MORE

Reproductive Health Uganda: A one-stop shop of life-changing services" Every year tens of thousands of Ugandans walk through the doors at Gulu Clinic. Everyone is welcome. Here are just a few of the people that went to the clinic one day last month. READ MORE 7:00 "I was suffering…..so my sister decided to bring me here. When she brought me here, I was treated and I got better. I really admired how they do their things and I really wanted to learn more about Reproductive Health." READ MORE 8:00 "I grew up alone. I ended up dropping out of school and I went for sex working. I came purposely here to RHU for Hepatitis B testing and also counselling because I have so many personal problems. I like coming here….they’re so caring." READ MORE 09:00 Fertility treatment remains a sensitive issue for men and women in Uganda but Brenda and her husband, Francis decided to visit Reproductive Health Uganda's clinic in Gulu. “They helped us a lot and we get proper treatment." READ MORE 15:00 "I realised that at this place they don't segregate. Us people with disabilities have challenges at the main hospitals. You go there, people around look at you as if you are not a human being and you don't fall sick." READ MORE 16:00 "Our goal is to ensure this Reproductive Health Uganda clinic in Gulu is a 'one-stop-centre'. When a client comes in, she comes out when she has got a very big package of services. And when we go to do outreach in the community we give very many services" READ MORE 17:00 At the end of a long day, Anicia, closes the clinic with praise for her colleagues who never turn anyone away. "We open at 8am…and we may end up sometimes up to 10pm because we never chase out our client. We’ll never close the place when we have a client inside. People come when they have no hope.” READ MORE 22:00

Christine is a 45-year-old grandmother who has HIV. She has been on antiretroviral treatment since 2005 and was widowed in 2006. She thinks her husband died of an HIV-related infection. “I heard on the radio that for people living positively it was a serious risk for us to get cervical cancer. During the announcements they mentioned some of the signs of cervical cancer like bad smell and so many signs. “I was having signs of discharge and very bad smell,” she said. She needed a smear to check for cervical cancer but getting one in rural Uganda wasn’t easy because money was tight and there were few gynaecologists available. “I tried in TASO Uganda, I failed. I went to Lachor Hospital, I never got satisfied.   “Early in 2013, I heard over the radio about the services being offered by Reproductive Health Uganda. I went to their service centre and I was examined for cervical cancer and I tested positive. I got services from that centre. Last August, when I went for my control, they found that I’m free of cervical cancer,” said Christine. When she went for the smear for cervical cancer at Gulu Clinic she was also tested for human papilloma virus (HPV). Today Christine is visited by two people at her thatched hut home four kilometres away from Gulu Clinic. It is part of the routine follow-up for patients. From first appearance, it is hard to believe that this grandmother of one is living with HIV until she tells you that she is living positively. In her hut, the portrait of her late husband is displayed on the wall. Smartly dressed in a white and black coloured long dress, Christine said she had seen many friends that had died of cervical cancer. “Gulu Clinic has changed my life completely because of the way they handle their clients. And we got the service at a lower cost than at other health centres." Follow a day in the life of our team and clients in Gulu, Uganda 07:00 08:00 9:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 22:00 Prev Next 7am: The team prepare for the long day ahead "Every year tens of thousands of Ugandans come to our clinic. Everyone is welcome. Here are just a few of the people that we served in one day last month." READ MORE 8am: Nancy, 19, becomes a volunteer "I was suffering but when I came here, I was treated and I got better. Now I'm inspired to volunteer here" READ MORE 9am: Monica, 25, a sex worker's story "I am sex working. I came here for Hepatitis B testing and also counselling. I have so many personal problems, but here….they’re so caring." READ MORE 10am: Jane, 23, saved by family planning "After multiple miscarriages, family planning here has helped me a lot. I'm glad we've been able to space the number of children we've had. I am not growing old, I am fresh." READ MORE 11am: Vicky, handling disabilities "I'm deaf so accessing services is hard, but here they really try to speak in sign language." READ MORE 12pm: Dorcus, first time patient "This is the first time I've ever come here, I like the service. They give good counselling so I recommend coming." READ MORE 1pm: Christine, 45, a grandmother's tale of living with HIV "I am living with HIV and had HPV. They treated me and now I'm free of cervical cancer." READ MORE 2pm: Lilian, struggling mother of six with sickle cell " I have sickle cell disease and so do all my children. I want to have my tube removed so that I don't get pregnant again but I don't know if my husband will allow it." READ MORE 3pm: Brenda and Francis get fertility treatments "Fertility treatment is a sensitive issue in Uganda but they help us a lot and we get proper treatment." READ MORE 4pm: Joyce, 25, repected regardless of her disability "I realised that at this place they don't segregate. Us people with disabilities have challenges at the main hospitals. You go there, people around look at you as if you are not a human being and you don't fall sick." READ MORE 5pm: Mobile clinic provides outreach services to remote villages "Our outreach to remote communities is a 'one-stop-centre'. We give family planning, vaccines for HPV, malaria, and Hepatitis B, HIV testing and more." READ MORE 22pm: Still giving the last client our very best "Together, we have great teamwork. Sometimes we're still working up to 10pm because we never chase out our clients. We’ll never close the place when we have a client inside. People come when they have no hope." READ MORE

.p { text-align: justify; align: left; } Uganda has one of the highest fertility rates in the world, and as a result, it also has one of the most youthful populations - more than half of Ugandans are under the age of 15. Over 78% of the population is below the age of 30. The population is growing at a rate of more than 3% per year. Figures show that women – on average - give birth to two more children than they want.   More than half of pregnancies in Uganda are unintended, and nearly a third of these end in abortion according to figures from the Guttmacher Institute. It also says that in Uganda approximately one in every 19 women has an abortion per year and with abortion being highly restricted most of these are unsafe. This rate is far higher than the average for East Africa and reflects the high level of unmet need for contraception in the country. Approximately, 755,000 unintended pregnancies occur annually out of which 297,000 result in unsafe abortions. Unintended pregnancy is common in Uganda, leading to high levels of unplanned births, unsafe abortions, and maternal injury and death. Women in the eastern and north regions had the highest proportions of unplanned births (50–54%) the high levels of unintended pregnancy and unplanned births in Uganda can be attributed primarily to nonuse of contraceptives by women who do not want a child soon. More than 80% of the population lives in rural areas. Millions of people still do not have access to a health clinic, and family planning, especially long term and permanent methods, is not available to the vast majority who live in rural and hard-to-reach areas. IPPF’s Member Association, Reproductive Health Uganda (RHU), is working hard on the ground to tackle these issues. It takes the approach that it offers people as many services as possible at its clinics so you can get your health needs met in the same place. This means you might go to a clinic for an HIV test but leave having being offered a range of contraception plus other tests for other sexually transmitted diseases or cancer.   RHU has a network of clinics across the country and takes its services out to remote and rural areas through its mobile clinics. No one is left out by RHU. Whether people are poor or vulnerable or hard to reach, RHU makes sure they have access to all of the services they need. We visited one of RHU’s health facilities in northern Uganda to get a better idea of how our work makes a real difference to people and their lives. We wanted to hear stories about what difference getting contraception, counselling and testing meant in reality. For many people it is life-changing. Thousands of people go in and out of Gulu Clinic every year and thousands more get services through Gulu’s mobile clinics. Last year alone Gulu Clinic had 229,812 family planning clients and provided 769,707 sexual health services, 390,488 of those were to young people.  It offers a ‘one-stop-shop’ approach which makes it easier for clients to get a range of integrated services. They can go to a clinic for a check-up but end up getting contraception, counselling and a whole range of other tests and treatments.  These include family planning, infertility management, cervical cancer screening, cryotherapy, youth friendly services, sexually transmitted infections and general sexual and reproductive health (SRH).  Denis Bongonyinge, who has worked at Gulu Clinic for four years, said: “For us our goal is to ensure that this place is just a one stop centre. When a client comes in, he goes out when he has got a very big package of services within the clinic. Even if we go out, we give very many services. Denis said he had come across a range of issues among the clients. Issues like high rates of teenage pregnancies, sexually transmitted infections and gender based violence which could all be dealt with at the centre. He added that he believed Gulu had managed to offer such a range of services because of its willingness to work with other partners interested in scaling up uptake of family planning and generally sexual and reproductive health services. Gulu Clinic is also inclusive to a wide range of people across the community and this includes sex workers and disabled people. Vicky Acora is deaf and has had problems getting services at other hospitals. But, she says about RHU: “They are really most welcoming and they try to communicate even in the little sign language they know. They are really very warm” She says she has since been advising other deaf persons to seek services at Reproductive Health Uganda because of the quick services. “I encourage other people to come here because it is fairer. I encourage other disabled people who use wheelchairs not only the deaf to come and access services here because it is really accessible for those who have a disability.” Follow a day in the life of our team and clients in Gulu, Uganda 07:00 08:00 9:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 22:00 Prev Next 7am: The team prepare for the long day ahead "Every year tens of thousands of Ugandans come to our clinic. Everyone is welcome. Here are just a few of the people that we served in one day last month." READ MORE 8am: Nancy, 19, becomes a volunteer "I was suffering but when I came here, I was treated and I got better. Now I'm inspired to volunteer here" READ MORE 9am: Monica, 25, a sex worker's story "I am sex working. I came here for Hepatitis B testing and also counselling. I have so many personal problems, but here….they’re so caring." READ MORE 10am: Jane, 23, saved by family planning "After multiple miscarriages, family planning here has helped me a lot. I'm glad we've been able to space the number of children we've had. I am not growing old, I am fresh." READ MORE 11am: Vicky, handling disabilities "I'm deaf so accessing services is hard, but here they really try to speak in sign language." READ MORE 12pm: Dorcus, first time patient "This is the first time I've ever come here, I like the service. They give good counselling so I recommend coming." READ MORE 1pm: Christine, 45, a grandmother's tale of living with HIV "I am living with HIV and had HPV. They treated me and now I'm free of cervical cancer." READ MORE 2pm: Lilian, struggling mother of six with sickle cell " I have sickle cell disease and so do all my children. I want to have my tube removed so that I don't get pregnant again but I don't know if my husband will allow it." READ MORE 3pm: Brenda and Francis get fertility treatments "Fertility treatment is a sensitive issue in Uganda but they help us a lot and we get proper treatment." READ MORE 4pm: Joyce, 25, repected regardless of her disability "I realised that at this place they don't segregate. Us people with disabilities have challenges at the main hospitals. You go there, people around look at you as if you are not a human being and you don't fall sick." READ MORE 5pm: Mobile clinic provides outreach services to remote villages "Our outreach to remote communities is a 'one-stop-centre'. We give family planning, vaccines for HPV, malaria, and Hepatitis B, HIV testing and more." READ MORE 22pm: Still giving the last client our very best "Together, we have great teamwork. Sometimes we're still working up to 10pm because we never chase out our clients. We’ll never close the place when we have a client inside. People come when they have no hope." READ MORE

Nigeria has Africa’s biggest population. And it’s still growing at 3% a year. A lack of family planning is one reason – many women and girls want contraception – but like millions around the world – can’t get it. But that could be about to change, thanks to a pilot project run by Planned Parenthood Federation of Nigeria (PPFN), IPPF’s national member. It’s proving a huge success. This is its story, told by the women whose lives it has changed and the people working to change them. LAUNCH THE INTERACTIVE STORY

Uganda has one of the highest fertility rates in the world, and as a result, it also has one of the most youthful populations - more than half of Ugandans are under the age of 15. Approximately, 755,000 unintended pregnancies occur annually out of which 297,000 result in unsafe abortions. We are working hard on the ground to tackle these issues. Our Member takes the approach of offering people as many services as possible to get all health needs met in the same place. See a day in the life of the staff and clients of Gulu clinic, Uganda.

Share the cake and share our message to global leaders on the crucial importance of sexual health around the world.  Only twelve months ago, every government at the United Nations signed up to the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development and agreed to take unprecedented steps to achieve gender equality and ensure access to sexual and reproductive health.   The commitment is there but we now need to make sure that this translates into action on the ground, action at country level around the globe.