Family Planning and Linkages with U.S. Health and Development Goals https://www.csis.org/analysis/family-planning-and-linkages-us-health-and-development-goals

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Cover photo: Jesse Swanson, CSIS.

APRIL 2014

Gretchan Blum

Jennifer Dyer

Janet Fleischman

AUTHORS

Janet Fleischman

Alisha Kramer

A Report of the CSIS Global Health Policy Center

Family Planning and

Linkages with U.S. Health

and Development Goals

A Trip Report of the CSIS Delegation to Ethiopia, February 2014

Kristin Dini Hernandez

Alisha Kramer

Sara Nitz

Tom Walsh

Delegation Members

Family Planning and Linkages with

U.S. Health and Development Goals

A Trip Report of the CSIS Delegation to Ethiopia,

February 2014

Authors

Janet Fleischman and Alisha Kramer

A Report of the CSIS Global Health Policy Center

April 2014

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Center for Strategic & International Studies

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Family Planning and Linkages with

U.S. Health and Development Goals

A Trip Report of the CSIS Delegation to Ethiopia,

February 2014

Janet Fleischman and Alisha Kramer1

Family planning is the smartest investment a government can make to reduce the

financial burden on the family, to reduce complications of pregnancy and

childbirth, to reduce maternal mortality. It has a huge impact on the overall

development of the nation. Once a family decides on the number of children [it

wants to have], then the children can go to school, have better nutrition, and

women have more time, which brings economic returns.—Dr. Kesetebirhan

Admasu, Minister of Health, Ethiopia (February 21, 2014)

Introduction

For decades, the United States has been the global leader in supporting voluntary

family planning services around the world.2 The benefits of family planning are

numerous, not only for women’s health, but also for increasing child survival,

nutrition, education, and economic development, as well as preventing mother-to-

child transmission of HIV. For these reasons, family planning is a core component of

sustainable development.

To examine the linkages between family planning and health and development

outcomes, the CSIS Global Health Policy Center led a delegation to Ethiopia in

February 2014. CSIS identified Ethiopia for the visit based on several factors: the

Ethiopian government’s high-level commitment to family planning, the marked

increase in Ethiopia’s contraceptive prevalence rate (CPR) in recent years, and the

importance of U.S. health investments in the country. Much of Ethiopia’s progress in

expanding family planning services stems from its innovative Health Extension

1 Janet Fleischman is a senior associate with the CSIS Global Health Policy Center. Alisha Kramer is a

program manager and research assistant with the CSIS Global Health Policy Center. The authors would

like to acknowledge the support provided by the U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa and the U.S. government

agencies, especially the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention, and the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. We also gratefully acknowledge the

assistance of the government of Ethiopia, including the Office of the First Lady and the Ministry of

Health. We also would like to thank the Pathfinder International country team for their assistance in

Tigray. Finally, we would like to thank the Ethiopian health extension workers, health providers, and

community members who provided us with important insights and perspective.

2 The FY2014 request for U.S. Global Health Funding for Global Family Planning/Reproductive Health is

$534 million. See Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, “U.S. Global Health Funding: Family

Planning/Reproductive Health (FP/RH), FY2001–FY2014,” http://kff.org/global-health-policy/slide/u-s-

global-health-funding-global-family-planningreproductive-health-fprh/.

| 1Program, which led to the deployment of 38,000 health extension workers (HEWs)—

largely young women—throughout the country to provide basic health services,

including family planning. The Ethiopian experience of training and paying

community health workers and implementing task shifting for family planning

services holds important lessons for other countries.

While Ethiopia’s achievements in the health sector have been considerable, there are

also stark social, economic, and political challenges. As the second-most populous

country in Africa, with a population of 90 million projected to double by 20503 and

with maternal mortality remaining unacceptably high,4 the imperative to increase

access to women’s health services and to address the unmet need for family planning

is urgent.5 Reaching adolescents and young women remains a major challenge,

especially given the continued high prevalence of child marriage.6 These challenges

are compounded by the government’s marked suspicion of civil society and the

private sector; the government is especially restrictive in areas related to democracy

and human rights. These factors complicate efforts to build sustainable family

planning programs. Accordingly, the delegation made it a priority to explore key

questions surrounding the sustainability of these programs and plans for gradual

transition from U.S. and other donor support to greater financial ownership by the

Ethiopian government.

The CSIS delegation was composed of bipartisan staff from three congressional offices,

representatives of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Hope Through Healing

Hands (founded by former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist), and staff from the CSIS

Global Health Policy Center.7 This trip followed a series of other delegations that CSIS

has led both to examine women’s health and U.S. global health policy in Africa. It

builds upon a substantial body of work that CSIS has undertaken in the area of

women’s global health over the past decade.

While support for international family planning has been a key feature of U.S. global

health policy, family planning has often been seen as contentious by some

3 Population Reference Bureau, “2010 World Population Data Sheet,” http://www.prb.org/Publications/

Datasheets/2010/2010wpds. 4 According to the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), maternal mortality in Ethiopia is estimated to be 350 per

100,000 live births, with estimates ranging from 210 to 630 per 100,000. See WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, and

The World Bank, Trends in Maternal Mortality: 1990 to 2010 (Geneva: WHO, 2012), http://www.unfpa.org/

webdav/site/global/shared/documents/publications/2012/Trends_in_maternal_mortality_A4-1.pdf. 5 The Ethiopian government has identified runaway population growth as a strategic threat that could

undermine its goal of becoming a middle-income country by 2025. 6 In our interview with Minister of Health Kesetebirhan Admasu on February 21, 2014, he noted that the

average age of marriage is 16.5. According to UNICEF, between 2002 and 2012, 16.3 percent of girls in

Ethiopia were married by the age of 15, and 47 percent were married by the age of 18. See UNICEF,

“Ethiopia: Statistics,” http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/ethiopia_statistics.html. In the Amhara region,

the Population Council has found that 59.9 percent of girls are married by the age of 18. See Tigest Tamrat

and Annabel Erulkar, “Married Adolescents and Family Planning: A Decade of Research and Programs

for Adolescent Girls in Ethiopia,” May 2013, http://www.wilsoncenter.org/sites/default/files/

Mengistu_Meeting_Sexual_and_Reproductive_Health_Needs.pdf. 7 The members of the delegation were Ms. Gretchan Blum, Office of Senator Mark Kirk (R-IL); Ms. Kristin

Dini Hernandez, Office of Representative Charles W. Dent (R-PA); Ms. Sara Nitz, Office of Representative

Karen Bass (D-CA); Mr. Tom Walsh, senior program officer, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; Dr. Jennifer

Dyer, executive director, Hope Through Healing Hands; Ms. Janet Fleischman, senior associate, CSIS

Global Health Policy Center; and Ms. Alisha Kramer, program manager and research assistant, CSIS

Global Health Policy Center.

2 | JANET FLEISCHMAN AND ALISHA KRAMER

policymakers and other influential actors, particularly those who oppose abortion and

question whether the term “family planning” includes abortion. U.S. laws on foreign

assistance clearly prohibit funding for abortion overseas.8 Increasingly, ever-wider

audiences, including many parts of the faith community and many who oppose

abortion, have recognized the important goals of voluntary family planning, including

healthy timing and spacing of pregnancies.9 Nonetheless, there continues to be

tension and debate about the merits of U.S. support to international family planning.

One of the aims of the trip was to clarify and illuminate the value of family planning

through an on-the-ground study of a dynamic national program.

U.S. Health and Development Investments in Ethiopia

The United States has a complex bilateral relationship with Ethiopia, which includes

important investments in the country’s health and development programs, a

significant peace and security relationship, and a complicated dialogue on democracy

and human rights. On the health front, Ethiopia is a focus country for key U.S.

government health initiatives, including the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS

Relief (PEPFAR) and the President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI).10 Ethiopia is also a major

beneficiary of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria, to which the

United States is the largest single donor. Given the Ethiopian government’s focus on

family planning and maternal health in its own health strategy, the United States is

also a strong partner in those areas. U.S. government assistance to health programs in

Ethiopia is provided through multiple, separate funding streams and implementing

partners.11

8 The family planning and abortion restrictions included in the annual appropriations bills include: The

Helms Amendment: No foreign assistance funds may be used to pay for the performance of abortion as a

method of family planning or to motivate or coerce any person to practice abortions. The Tiahrt

Amendment: Service providers or referral agents may not implement or be subject to numerical targets or

quotas of total number of births, number of family planning acceptors, or acceptors of a particular family

planning method; there may be no incentives, bribes, gratuities, or financial reward for family planning

program personnel for achieving targets or quotas, or for individuals in exchange for becoming a family

planning acceptor.

9 The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) requires that family planning programs comply

with the principles of voluntarism and informed choice to ensure that women are free to choose whether

to use family planning and if so, what method is most appropriate for her; if a woman chooses

sterilization, she must provide written voluntary consent. See USAID, “Voluntarism and Informed

Choice,” http://www.usaid.gov/what-we-do/global-health/family-planning/voluntarism-and-informed-

choice. 10 For fiscal year 2013, 40 percent of USAID’s budget in Ethiopia was focused on health: $37.1 million for

maternal and child health (MCH), $30 million for family planning/reproductive health (FP/RH), $13

million for tuberculosis, $7.2 million for nutrition, and $43 million for malaria, totaling $130.3 million.

New PEPFAR funding under Country Operational Plan (COP) 2013 will total approximately $271 million,

including unexpended funds from previous fiscal years. This brings the U.S. health budget to $401.3

million. Data from interviews with officials at the U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. 11 This ensures, for example, that U.S. HIV/AIDS funds are not used to purchase family planning

commodities (other than condoms, which also protect against HIV transmission), in accordance with

PEPFAR policy. According to PEPFAR’s COP Guidance for 2014: “As part of comprehensive care for HIV

and AIDS, field teams are expected to prioritize opportunities to use PEPFAR funds to support voluntary

family planning and reproductive health (FP/RH) services. These services must meet an HIV prevention,

treatment, or care purpose and/or link PEPFAR-funded activities with FP/RH activities funded from

separate U.S. government accounts or other non-U.S. government sources of funds. As in years past,

PEPFAR funds may not be used to purchase family planning commodities; however, male and female

condoms can be purchased using PEPFAR funds.” See President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief

FAMILIY PLANNING AND LINKAGES WITH U.S. HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT GOALS | 3

USAID in Ethiopia has focused on increasing utilization of family planning services

through a number of approaches: building capacity of the health extension workers

(HEWs) to integrate family planning into community health and HIV/AIDS services;

supporting scale-up of long-acting family planning methods, like implants and

intrauterine devices (IUDs),12 through the HEWs; strengthening private clinics to

provide family planning/reproductive health services; providing contraceptive

commodities and strengthening the logistics system; and supporting the Ministry of

Health to improve monitoring and evaluation of the demand, uptake, and quality of

family planning services.13

USAID’s flagship family planning program is the Integrated Family Health Program

(IFHP), implemented by Pathfinder International and John Snow, Inc. IFHP is

embedded in the public health system and provides technical assistance to the

Ministry of Health and regional health bureaus in six of the country’s eight regions. In

particular, IFHP provides training to HEWs, midwives, and health care providers at

health posts and health centers.14

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Ethiopia focuses on HIV,

laboratory systems, and strategic information. To carry out its work on the Prevention

of Mother-to-Child Transmission (PMTCT) of HIV, CDC uses its PEPFAR funding to

strengthen health systems and health infrastructure. This includes offering family

planning to HIV-infected women at the six-week postpartum visit, as part of “prong 2”

of PMTCT, established by the World Health Organization.15

The Health Extension Program

In 2003, the government of Ethiopia launched its Health Extension Program (HEP),

with the aim of making health services available and accessible to Ethiopia’s rural

populations. Ethiopia is a vast country, approximately twice the size of Texas, with

mountainous terrain and remote villages that are sometimes inaccessible by roads or

motorized vehicles. It is estimated that almost 84 percent of the country’s population

resides in these rural areas.16 In order to deliver preventive and basic curative

services and to provide health education to these populations, the government of

(PEPFAR), “FY2014 Country Operational Plan (COP) Guidance,” November 8, 2013, http://www.pepfar.gov/

documents/organization/217765.pdf.

12 In fiscal year 2013, the U.S. government procured over $9.7 million in contraceptive commodities for

Ethiopia, including male condoms, Depo Provera, Microgynon, Jadelle, Implanon, and Combined Oral

Contraceptives.

13 USAID Ethiopia presentation on MNCH and RH/FP Program to CSIS delegation, February 17, 2014. 14 Other USAID programs that support family planning include: Maternal and Child Health Integrated

Program (MCHIP), focusing on postpartum family planning and IUDs; Support for International Family

Planning Organizations (SIFPO), which conducts social franchising of family planning services in private

health facilities; and the Program Research for Strengthening Services (PROGRESS), which works with the

government to increase capacity for monitoring and evaluation on family planning initiatives. See USAID,

“Family Planning and Reproductive Health,” October 2013, http://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/

documents/1860/Family%20Planning%20Reproductive%20Health%20Fact%20Sheet.pdf. 15 Comprehensive PMTCT programs include a four-prong approach: prong 1, prevention of HIV among

women of childbearing age; prong 2, prevention of unintended pregnancy among HIV-infected women;

prong 3, prevention of transmission of HIV from women living with HIV to their infants; prong 4,

treatment, care, and support for women living with HIV, their children, and their families. 16 The Central Statistics Agency, “Summary Report 2007 Census: Ethiopia,”

http://www.ethiopianvision.com/2007Census.pdf.

4 | JANET FLEISCHMAN AND ALISHA KRAMER

methods such as contraceptive implants (estimated at 15–20 percent).20 It is only

recently that women were able to access these long-acting contraceptive services at

the health post level. As part of the initial program, the HEWs were trained to

administer injectable contraceptives, and in 2009, the government started training

HEWs in the insertion of Implanon implants.21 This example of task shifting is one of

the most important contributions of the HEP. Women still must travel to higher-level

health centers for IUD insertion and implant removal, and to hospitals for tubal

ligation, but the opportunity to get injectables, combined oral contraceptives,

condoms, and implants at the health post level has had a significant impact. Largely as

a result of the HEP, contraceptive prevalence increased from 15 percent in 2005 to 29

percent in 2011.22 An evaluation in 2013 by IFHP found that the modern contraceptive

prevalence rate had risen to 39.1 percent in 2013.23

At a rural health post in Gemad Kebele in the Tigray region, the delegation saw

firsthand the changes brought about by the health extension program, as well as the

ongoing challenges. Mihret, a HEW at Gemad Health Post, described the progress she

has seen in women accessing family planning methods. More women are seeking

family planning services. Of these, the majority choose injectables though demand for

implants is on the rise for those who want to space their children three years or more

apart.

Mihret’s own story illustrates both the barriers that girls face in Ethiopia as well as the

changes that have occurred in recent years. When she was almost 11 years old in

grade 3, her family arranged for her to be married to a man more than twice her age.

Although she was allowed to stay in school until grade 8, she became pregnant and

had her first child when she was 17 years old. Mihret managed to go back to school

until grade 10, after which she underwent training to become a HEW. She told the

delegation that she enjoyed helping the community, noting: “My work involves the

health of women and children, and I’ve seen changes.” Mihret’s reflections on the

important changes that Ethiopia has undergone in recent years track with what the

delegation learned about the improved health outcomes from family planning. In

particular, family planning has contributed to the decline in total fertility rates in

Ethiopia, from 5.5 in 2000 to 4.8 in 2011, with fertility rates in urban areas falling to

2.6 in 2011.24

20 Health providers interviewed by the delegation indicated that most Ethiopian women prefer family

planning methods like injectable contraceptives (depo provera), because one shot lasts for three months,

and some find it important that the injectable is discreet, meaning that husbands, partners, or mothers-

in-law do not need to know. Increasingly, women are choosing contraceptive implants (Implanon or

Jadelle), which last three to five years. These long-acting methods reduce the time that women have to

spend traveling to a health facility and the frequency of their visits. 21 Olson and Piller, “Ethiopia: An Emerging Family Planning Success Story.” 22 Pathfinder International, “Contraceptive Use in Ethiopia Doubles Twice in Ten Years,” December 1,

2011, http://www.pathfind.org/news/Contraceptive-Use-in-Ethiopia-Doubles-Twice-in-Ten-Years.html. 23 Pathfinder International and John Snow Inc., “Integrated Family Health Program (IFHP): Household

Survey Report on Baseline-Endline Comparison of Key Outcome Indicators in Program Areas,” USAID

Addis Ababa, January 2014. 24 Central Statistical Agency (Ethiopia) and ICF International, Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey

2011 (Addis Ababa: Central Statistical Agency, March 2012), http://dhsprogram.com/pubs/pdf/FR255/

FR255.pdf.

6 | JANET FLEISCHMAN AND ALISHA KRAMER

Challenges

Reaching Young Women and Adolescent Girls

The highest unmet need for family planning is among married and unmarried

adolescents ages 15 to 19, which according to the 2011 Ethiopia Demographic and

Health Survey (DHS) was estimated to be 33 percent of the population. The

government of Ethiopia has made it a priority to reach adolescent girls with a range of

services, but significant social, cultural, and religious barriers remain. Despite a law

that prohibits child marriage before the age of 18, many rural families arrange for

their daughters to be married at young ages to much older men, and both the

husbands and their families expect the girls to give birth soon after marriage. This

often leads to poor health and development outcomes for the girl and her children;

marriage makes it difficult for the girl to stay in school and continue her education,

and early pregnancy can lead to severe health complications such as obstetric fistula.

Youth-friendly health services, available in some health centers, are important where

they exist, but are not sufficient to address these needs.

To reach this population of young women will require not only expanding

information, access to services, and a mix of contraceptive commodity choices, but

also supporting programs focused on behavior change and reaching “gatekeepers” in

the communities. This means engaging men and boys, religious and community

leaders, and others who exert control over the lives of young women, such as

mothers-in-laws.

Integration of Family Planning with Other Health and Development

Programs

Many opportunities exist to integrate family planning into other program activities,

ranging from maternal and child health services, to HIV/AIDS and PMTCT programs,

to economic empowerment and agricultural outreach programs, to education at the

primary, secondary, and tertiary levels. Integration can help ensure that all

opportunities are taken to address a woman’s health more comprehensively, such as

addressing the family planning needs of a woman living with HIV as part of her HIV

care. The goal of integration is to ensure that all of the health needs of the individual

are addressed when she accesses health services. Ethiopia provides important

examples of the impact of promoting integration in the health sector, especially

through IFHP’s work with the health extension workers and other health providers.

Ultimately, integration often means a more efficient and effective use of U.S.

government assistance; however, given the separate funding streams that come from

the United States, the Global Fund, and other donors, integration requires

understanding where the funding comes from and whether that funding includes any

restrictions on its use. The complexity of U.S.—and international—funding

mechanisms and their real or perceived restrictions can be a major barrier to

successful program integration.

FAMILIY PLANNING AND LINKAGES WITH U.S. HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT GOALS | 7

Private-sector Engagement

Government restrictions on the private sector and nongovernmental organizations

(NGOs) have resulted in a very limited space where such entities can operate. This is

evident in the family planning arena, where opportunities are limited for the private

sector and NGOs to provide family planning services. To meet Ethiopia’s family

planning goals and make the program sustainable, it will be important to shift

wealthier women away from the free, public-sector services to private providers.25

This strategy of market segmentation and cost recovery from clients who would be

able to pay modest sums for family planning commodities can offset costs for public-

sector commodity procurement and help build more sustainable cost-sharing schemes

for family planning services.

Government restrictions are especially apparent in the effect of the Charities and

Societies law. In 2009, the Ethiopian government passed the Charities and Societies

Proclamation (draft law) to register and regulate civil society organizations (CSOs).

The CSO law, overseen by the Charities and Societies Agency, restricts civil society’s

ability to work on areas related to human rights and advocacy. According to the law,

organizations classified as Ethiopian charities can engage in some advocacy work;

however, they cannot receive more than 10 percent of funding from foreign sources.26

This law has had a direct impact on NGOs working in Ethiopia and thus been a

limiting factor for access to health services.

The CSO law further requires that 70 percent of an organization’s expenses go toward

programmatic activities, while administrative costs are limited to 30 percent of total

costs. The Ethiopian government justifies these restrictions by citing the need to

reduce programs’ overhead costs, such as salaries and office space, for organizations

operating in the country. However, the definition for what are considered

administrative versus operational costs has proven problematic for many

organizations, including those working on women’s health and family planning. In

particular, activities related to technical assistance, training/capacity building, and

monitoring and evaluation are all considered administrative costs under the act.

Accordingly, organizations providing these services have been compelled to cut them

back to keep administrative costs under 30 percent of total costs, again reducing

availability of services to Ethiopians.

Gender Disparities

Ethiopia remains a male-dominated society. This manifests in gender-related

disparities in social, cultural, economic, and political spheres. Harmful traditional

practices, including child marriage and female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C),

remain important challenges to women’s and girls’ health and rights. Although the

25 Karlan Jankowski et al., Ethiopia: Family Planning Market Analysis: Using Evidence on Demand and Use

for Contraception to Plan for a Total Market Approach in Ethiopia (Washington, DC: USAID, June 2013), xii,

http://deliver.jsi.com/dlvr_content/resources/allpubs/countryreports/ET_FamiPlanMark.pdf. 26 The CSO law defines three types of charity organizations: (1) Ethiopian charities, with at least 90

percent of funding generated locally; (2) Ethiopian residents charities, with less than 90 percent of

funding generated locally; and (3) foreign charities based outside of Ethiopia. Only Ethiopian Charities

Organizations are allowed to engage in some rights and advocacy-related works. See Christian Relief and

Development Associations (CRDA) Ethiopia, “Charities and Societies Proclamation,” http://www.

crdaethiopia.org/Documents/Charities%20and%20Socities%20Legislation%20(3rd%20Version).pdf.

8 | JANET FLEISCHMAN AND ALISHA KRAMER

age of marriage is legally 18, and FGM/C is illegal, government enforcement of these

laws remains very weak.27 Maternal mortality in Ethiopia remains high, due to the

low percentage of women who deliver at health facilities. The 2011 DHS survey put

the national rate for facility deliveries at 10 percent.28 More recent data suggests that

the national average has increased to 20 percent,29 although estimates suggest facility

rates as high as 39 percent in some of the U.S. government-supported areas.30

Gender inequalities also are apparent in education. Although in recent years young

girls’ enrollment in primary schools has increased sharply, many drop out before or

during secondary school, when the family deems that household chores, marriage, or

pregnancy should take priority. Even if a girl is able to continue her schooling through

secondary school, household chores, child care, and lack of support from the family

often prevent her from studying. Many girls are therefore unprepared to pass the

national exam after grade 10 that would allow them to continue to university

education. Female participation in universities is increasing steadily but from an

extremely low baseline. Even those that make it to university face a range of social

pressures, including sexual assault and harassment and unintended pregnancy, that

often result in adverse health outcomes and undermine their academic performance.

These and other factors result in barriers to women’s access to economic

empowerment and resources. Women often work in agriculture, but they are rarely

able to access the agricultural inputs that could help improve their crop yields. In

government, civil servants are overwhelmingly male, and at the national level, out of

22 ministry officials, only two are women.31

Sustainability and Transition

The Ethiopian government has demonstrated strong country ownership for its health

program, increasing its allocation of domestic resources, as well as the budget line for

family planning. However, the health budget is still heavily reliant on external donors,

including the United States, with the government estimating that 50 percent of the

health budget comes from external resources.32 Even though the government pays the

salaries of the HEWs, for example, the long-term sustainability of the program will

require increasing domestic resources as well as continued donor support.

The government also will have to examine the broader sustainability of the health

extension program. The HEWs with whom the delegation spoke were eager to

increase their training and to acquire new skills. The government has outlined a plan

for HEWs to receive higher degree levels and increased pay, but it will be critical to

27 U.S. State Department Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, “Country Reports on Human

Rights Practices for 2013,” http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/humanrightsreport/index.htm#wrapper. 28 The 2011 DHS cites institutional deliveries at 4 percent among women in rural areas compared to 50

percent among women in urban areas, but the national average is 10 percent. See Central Statistical

Agency (Ethiopia) and ICF International, Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey 2011. 29 Health Sector Development Program (HSDP), “HSDP IV Mid-term Review (MTR),” slide presentation,

Addis Ababa, May 17, 2013. 30 Draft IFHP Endline Survey obtained through e-mail message to authors. The endline report is still in

draft form at the writing of this paper.

31 Ethiopian Government Portal, “Ministries and Agencies,” April 2014, http://www.ethiopia.gov.et/

ministries-and-agencies. 32 Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia Ministry of Health, “Ethiopia’s Fifth National Health Accounts,

2010/2011,” April 2014, 18.

FAMILIY PLANNING AND LINKAGES WITH U.S. HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT GOALS | 9

recruit new HEWs so that a continuous cycle of hiring, growth, and career

advancement is maintained.

In the family planning sphere, there are similar concerns about sustainability,

especially since the government provides family planning free of charge throughout

the country. Addressing the unmet need for family planning and expanding the

contraceptive prevalence rate will require an ever-increasing supply of commodities.

The Ethiopian government has an ambitious goal to increase contraceptive prevalence

to 66 percent by 2015, from the current level of 28.6 percent.33 Dr. Kesetebirhan

Admasu, the minister of health, has already acknowledged the need to fill a 50 percent

gap in domestic funding for family planning commodities.34 In the delegation’s

meeting with the minister, he cited the looming issue of rising costs associated with

rising demand for commodities. He said the government anticipates that 2 million

implants will be inserted over the next three years at a cost of $24 million. Currently,

20 percent of family planning commodities are supplied by the United States.

Globally, the U.S. government has emphasized the importance of transitioning health

programs toward greater country ownership and program management. In addition

to the gradual reduction of PEPFAR funding and transition of HIV/AIDS to Ethiopian

government control, the next five-year round of funding for the IFHP includes a goal

to “graduate” 50 percent of the woredas (districts) during that time period. The Global

Fund will also be looking to reduce Ethiopia’s share of funding as it implements a new

allocation-based funding model that seeks to push more funding to countries with

higher disease burdens. Given this changing donor landscape, it will be critical for

USAID to work closely with the Ethiopian Ministry of Health, regional health bureaus,

the Global Fund, and U.S. government implementing partners to develop clear criteria

for and mechanisms to reach eventual graduation. Where there are more affluent

populations that are able to pay for family planning services, plans for transition

should include market segmentation to expand opportunities for social franchising

and cost recovery in family planning programs. Family planning also should be

included in the government’s new social and community health insurance schemes.

Ultimately, transition should be gradual, with an emphasis on long-term sustainability

that preserves recent health gains and ensures the necessary monitoring and support

going forward.

Engaging the Faith Community

Ethiopia has a strong religious tradition, with the majority of the population belonging

to the Eastern Orthodox Church (estimated at 43.5 percent), as well as a substantial

Muslim population (estimated at 33.9 percent) and Protestant denominations (18.6

percent).35 Faith leaders are very influential in shaping social norms in Ethiopia.

Increasingly, many religious leaders are educating their followers about the dangers

of harmful traditional practices, such as early marriage, the importance of healthy

33 Central Statistical Agency (Ethiopia) and ICF International, Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey

2011. 34 Kesetebirhan Admasu, “Africa: Be Bold, Do Not Shy Away—Girls and Women Have the Right to Access

Family Planning Services,” AllAfrica.com, October 22, 2013, http://allafrica.com/stories/

201310221394.html. 35 Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook, “Ethiopia,” March 27, 2014, https://www.cia.gov/

library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/et.html.

10 | JANET FLEISCHMAN AND ALISHA KRAMER

timing and spacing of pregnancies, and HIV prevention and treatment. Although

modern methods of contraception remain a sensitive topic for some religious leaders,

the efforts by religious scholars, nongovernmental organizations, and even the

government have helped address some of their family planning questions.

As one Orthodox priest told the delegation, “Unknowingly, people say family planning

is a sin. What is a sin is if you can’t feed your children or send them to school.” He

continued: “From experience, we see that in families with limited children, they grow

up well…women are physically stronger with spaced births.”36

An example of an initiative to reach out to Orthodox priests about a range of

important health issues was called the Development Bible. A project supported by

external donors and the Orthodox Church, the Development Bible brings messages

about health and development, including HIV and reproductive health, into training

materials for priests. Important opportunities exist to further engage with religious

scholars and religious leaders to advance information about the value of family

planning for their communities.

Policy Options

Family planning is critical to advancing women’s and children’s health, as healthy

timing and spacing of pregnancies reduces key health risks to both mother and child;

it is also central to achieving broader U.S. goals in health and development. Ethiopia’s

innovative HEP provides important lessons for other countries working to expand

access to family planning and other basic health services. The United States should

work with other interested countries to help adapt Ethiopia’s model for their own

context, and how to sustainably scale up and finance such programs.

The findings of our bipartisan delegation underscore the importance of continuing

U.S. global leadership on the basis of clearly defined terms, shared goals, and evidence

of impact. New opportunities for integrating family planning with other health and

development priorities should be actively pursued and operationalized. In the current

U.S. political environment, the challenge will be to expand areas of bipartisan

common ground around family planning, to cultivate new champions across the

political spectrum, and to advance linkages between family planning and other health

and development goals. Ultimately, a woman’s ability to time and space her

pregnancies is directly linked to her ability to access economic empowerment

opportunities, to educate and feed her children, and to keep herself and her family

healthy—all goals that command wide support in the United States.

The Obama administration and the U.S. Congress should use upcoming opportunities

in 2014 to demonstrate the U.S. commitment to prioritizing family planning as an

integral component of women’s and girls’ health and development in U.S. policy. This

means emphasizing the substantial and concrete impact that family planning can

have on maternal health, child survival, and HIV/AIDS, as well as youth, food security,

economic development, and education programs. The White House should take the

lead to ensure that family planning is integrated across U.S. government health and

36 Keshi Gebre Tsadkan, meeting with the CSIS delegation, Wukro, Ethiopia, February 18, 2014.

FAMILIY PLANNING AND LINKAGES WITH U.S. HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT GOALS | 11

development programs, and is prioritized by each relevant U.S. government agency.

Important upcoming opportunities include:

 At the African Leaders Summit in early August 2014, President Obama should

ensure that women’s and girls’ health and development issues, including access

to family planning, are an explicit part of the high-level discussions about

youth, economic growth, and development in Africa.

 Secretary of State John Kerry should elevate the importance of family planning

for women’s and girls’ health and empowerment as part of U.S. diplomatic,

development, and security strategies. This includes:

 engaging with the African Union leadership to include women’s and

girls’ health and family planning as part of the next African Union

summit in June 2014;

 publicly recognizing that women’s and girls’ health and access to family

planning are an essential part of the response to gender-based violence

and post-rape care, and that access to family planning services should be

one of the metrics by which success is measured;

 supporting the inclusion of family planning targets and indicators in the

post-2015 development agenda.

The U.S. Congress should engage on a bipartisan basis to examine the impact of family

planning to inform policy decision-making on U.S. global health and development.

 Congress should host a series of briefings to educate members and staff on

what family planning is, its health impact for women and children, and how

family planning plays a key role in achieving other U.S. health and

development goals (such as reducing child mortality, increasing food security,

and promoting gender equality). These briefings create opportunities to hear

from experts from countries where the United States has family planning

investments, including programs with linkages to other health and

development areas.

 Congress should prioritize resources for international family planning

programs as well as for linkages between family planning and other health and

development programs, such as maternal and child health, HIV/AIDS, gender

equity and women’s economic empowerment, humanitarian responses, and

food security. This should include mechanisms to monitor progress and impact.

Opportunities in the U.S.-Ethiopia bilateral dialogue on health and development:

 USAID, CDC, PEPFAR, and the Global Fund should promote sustainability of

their investments in health and development programs in Ethiopia. This means

U.S. agencies should work closely with the Ethiopian Ministry of Health,

Ministry of Finance, regional health bureaus, and U.S. government

implementing partners to develop clear criteria for and mechanisms to move

toward greater national sustainability. Plans being developed for eventual

transition to greater Ethiopian government funding should include positive

12 | JANET FLEISCHMAN AND ALISHA KRAMER

recognition of progress and assurances that programs successfully initiated

with U.S. assistance are sustained financially and programmatically.

 The U.S. government should support the work of a range of civil society,

private-sector, and religious organizations in Ethiopia to advance women’s

health and development. The United States should continue to raise concerns

about restrictions placed on these activities by the Ethiopian government, since

participation by these groups will help increase access to and sustainability of

family planning and other health and development programs for women and

girls.

  

The Ethiopian government’s efforts to increase access to family planning through the

Health Extension Program is unique and offers important lessons for other countries.

Despite multiple enduring challenges, Ethiopia has made measurable progress in

advancing family planning information and services. The United States has made

important and targeted contributions to this program, which have been integral to its

success. Through sustained effort, Ethiopia has the opportunity to further expand the

benefits of family planning to advance women’s and children’s health, as well as to

reach broader health and development goals.

FAMILIY PLANNING AND LINKAGES WITH U.S. HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT GOALS | 13Appendix: Delegation Agenda

Delegation Members

Ms. Gretchan Blum, Legislative Aide, Office of Senator Mark Kirk (R-IL)

Dr. Jennifer Dyer, Executive Director, Hope through Healing Hands

Ms. Janet Fleischman, Senior Associate, CSIS Global Health Policy Center

Ms. Kristin Dini Hernandez, Legislative Director, Office of Representative Charles Dent

(R-PA)

Ms. Alisha Kramer, Program Manager and Research Assistant, CSIS Global Health

Policy Center

Ms. Sara Nitz, Legislative Assistant, Office of Representative Karen Bass (D-CA)

Mr. Tom Walsh, Senior Program Officer, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Monday, February 17: Addis Ababa

Meeting with the First Lady of Ethiopia, Ms. Roman Tesfaye

Working Lunch: Ethiopia Scene Setter

Mr. Haddis D. Tadesse, Country Representative, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Meeting with Peace Corps and Peace Corps Volunteers (PCV)

Mr. Daniel R. Baker, Director of Programing and Training

Ms. Helen Jones, third year health PCV

Ms. Laura Still, third year health PCV

Working Dinner: U.S. Investments in Family Planning and Health in Ethiopia

Dr. Nwando Diallo, Deputy Country Director, CDC

Dr. Carmela Green-Abate, Coordinator, PEPFAR

Dr. Jeff Hansen, Country Director, CDC

Mr. Joshua Karnes, Health Team Lead, USAID

Tuesday, February 18: Tigray Province and Mekelle

Site Visit: Gemad Health Post, Gemad Kebele

Ms. Mihret Gebrehiwot, Health Extension Worker

Meeting with Pathfinder International: the Integrated Family Health Program (IFHP)

Dr. Mengistu Asnake, Chief of Party, IFHP; Country Representative, Pathfinder

International

Mr. Awala Equar, Regional Program Manager, IFHP

14 | JANET FLEISCHMAN AND ALISHA KRAMER

Meeting with Religious Leader

Keshi Gebre Tsadkan, Christian Orthodox Priest

Meeting with Religious Leaders, St. Frumentius Abba Selama Kessate, Berhan

Theological College

Mr. Tesfaye Hadera, Dean

Mr. Mekonnen Tesfay, Vice Dean

Mr. Assefa Reda’e, Bible for Development Coordinator

Wednesday, February 19: Tigray Province and Mekelle

Site Visit: Agulae Health Center

Mr. Tirete Zeleke, Director

Working Lunch: Addressing Young Women’s Health and Education in Universities

Ms. Senait Gebreegziabher, Gender Office Head, Mekelle University

Thursday, February 20: Addis Ababa

Working breakfast: Engagement of the Faith Community in Ethiopia in Women’s

Health Issues

Dr. Samson Hailegiorgis, public health expert and theologian

Site Visit: Gandhi Memorial Hospital

Working Lunch: Implementing Family Planning Programs—Partner’s View

Population Council—Annabel Erulkar, Country Director

CARE—Esther Watts, Program Director

Last 10 Kilometers—Wuleta Betemariam, Project Director

JHPIEGO—Hannah Gibson, Country Director

FHI360—Francis Okello, Deputy Country Director

Marie Stopes International—Nils Gade, Country Director

Working Dinner: Donor Perspectives

UK Government—Kassa Mohammed, Health Advisor for DFID Ethiopia

Dutch Government—Bouwe-Jan Smeding, First Secretary Health

David & Lucile Packard Foundation—Yemeserach Belayneh, Ethiopia Country

Adviser

UNFPA—Sabine Beckmann, Program Coordinator

FAMILIY PLANNING AND LINKAGES WITH U.S. HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT GOALS | 15

Friday, February 21: Addis Ababa

Meeting with Reuben Brigety, U.S. Ambassador to the African Union

Meeting with Patricia M. Haslach, U.S. Ambassador to Ethiopia; and officials from

USAID, CDC, and PEPFAR

Meeting with Minister of Health, Dr. Kesetebirhan Admasu

Working Dinner CSIS Delegation Internal Debrief

16 | JANET FLEISCHMAN AND ALISHA KRAMER

1616 Rhode Island Avenue NW | Washington, DC 20036

t. (202) 887-0200 | f. (202) 775-3199 | www.csis.org

Cover photo: Jesse Swanson, CSIS.

APRIL 2014

Gretchan Blum

Jennifer Dyer

Janet Fleischman

AUTHORS

Janet Fleischman

Alisha Kramer

A Report of the CSIS Global Health Policy Center

Family Planning and

Linkages with U.S. Health

and Development Goals

A Trip Report of the CSIS Delegation to Ethiopia, February 2014

Kristin Dini Hernandez

Alisha Kramer

Sara Nitz

Tom Walsh

Delegation Members