Sexual and Reproductive Health for All: 20 Years of The Global Strategy

Thirty years ago, the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), held in Cairo, Egypt, highlighted the right of all individuals to accomplish the greatest requirement of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR). In 2004, WHO published a reproductive health strategy – validated by 191 Member States at the Fifty-seventh World Health Assembly – that enhanced the midpoint of SRHR to societies and economies (Resolution WHA57.12). These frameworks are grounded in gender equality and recognize the constant value of sexual health in achieving health for all.

WHO researchers worked with Member States, civil society and communities across all regions to operationalize a Global Strategy to cover the 5 key pillars for improving SRHR:

– improving antenatal, perinatal, postpartum and newborn care

– providing family planning services

– eliminating risky abortion

– combatting sexually transmitted infections (STIs).

– promoting sexual health.

Resolution WHA57.12 additional notified SRHR policies and assisting files in numerous regions and Member States. For example, Latin America’s 2013 Montevideo Consensus and Africa’s Maputo Strategy from 2016 (structure upon the initial 2006 strategy) both consist of language and concepts strengthening and promoting SRHR.

” The international technique is the fundamental policy file that centres WHO’s required for sexual and reproductive health to date,” stated Dr Pascale Allotey, Director of the UN Special Programme on Human Reproduction (HRP) and WHO’s Department of Sexual and Reproductive Health. “The text remains important in adding to assisting research study top priorities and dealing with nations to develop beneficial resources to ensure thorough SRHR throughout the life course.”

Significant development has actually been made over the last 20 years within each of the five pillars, consisting of these examples.

– The Global technique came about as the world was reeling from the HIV and AIDS epidemic. Today, the number of people acquiring HIV has fallen by 38% because 2010 alone, due in part to the Strategy’s emphasis on getting rid of STIs including HIV.

– As of March 2022, 60% of WHO Member States have actually consisted of the human papillomavirus vaccine (HPV) in their routine immunization schedules, greatly advancing efforts to eliminate cervical cancer as a public health danger.

– Prioritizing family preparation services and birth control access led to WHO’s Family preparation: an international handbook for providers referral guide, which has been shared over a million times. Accordingly, the proportion of females using modern-day contraceptive methods increased from 467 million in 1990 to 874 million in 2022, while a broader variety of contraceptive choices is now offered.

A 2020 study found that there has actually been a worldwide decrease in unintended pregnancy. Furthermore, evidence-based medical abortion regimens have improved global access to abortion, and over 60 countries have liberalized abortion laws in the previous 30 years in line with evidence on the value of such efforts to guarantee the health of ladies and teen women.

Professor Kate Gilmore, co-chair of the Gender and Human Rights Advisory Panel of HRP, credited the Strategy and WHO for assisting produce proof on SRHR that has actually added to a few of these shifts. “Some of the great advances that we have actually seen – including the method civil society has taken up the cause to argue for access to safe and legal abortion – are because of the Strategy and the methodical generation of evidence over these previous twenty years,” she stated.

Despite early gains, however, current years have actually seen signs of stagnation. From 2000 to 2020, the maternal death rate stopped by 34% around the world – however a 2023 report discovered that progress has mostly stalled since. The worrisome pattern was highlighted during a recent occasion showcasing worldwide datasets on the advancement of SRHR because ICPD. High maternal death rates persist in a few nations and sexual health concerns, such as endometriosis, infertility and sexual erectile dysfunction, are typically neglected or normalized.

Dr Allotey and Dr Manjulaa Narasimhan, scientist at WHO and HRP, kept in mind in a current commentary in the WHO Bulletin that the SRHR agenda remains incomplete and in some circumstances has fallen back due to geopolitical tensions, financial recessions, the international food crisis, climate modification, humanitarian crises and COVID-19.

There are emerging chances to catalyse development – for instance, by improving human rights-based approaches in SRHR and embedding principles like non-discrimination, consisting of in crisis circumstances. Improving health systems with a main health-care technique can improve equity and broaden access to detailed SRHR services. New innovations and alternative service shipment approaches can enhance SRHR by expanding access, option and autonomy.

Other future-looking focus areas within SRHR include research on the transformative function of synthetic intelligence and innovative contraception methods, additional deal with strengthening health systems, and the sustaining prioritization of favorable pregnancy and giving birth experiences.

At a wider level, Dr Allotey called for a continued emphasis on the foundational significance of SRHR. “Sexual and reproductive health should never be relegated to the margins of health care, but recognized as crucial for the overall wellness of people and the neighborhoods in which they live,” she said.