TheJakartaPost

Please Update your browser

Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.

Jakarta Post

A pregnant pause in family planning efforts

Planning ahead: Advanced Family Planning discussion working group conducts a meeting with the National Population and Family Planning Board of Central Java

The Jakarta Post
Mon, May 25, 2015

Share This Article

Change Size

A pregnant pause in family planning efforts

P

span class="inline inline-center">Planning ahead: Advanced Family Planning discussion working group conducts a meeting with the National Population and Family Planning Board of Central Java. The meeting, conducted in March, provided strategic consultation for creating more effective family planning programs.

There is the important need to enhance public awareness of what defines a good family planning program for today'€™s Indonesia, experts say.

Indonesia for many years was a shining example of the successful implementation of family planning programs.

Data from University of Indonesia'€™s demography institution states that the total fertility rate in the 1960s, prior to implementation of the family planning program (known simply by its initials KB during the New Order era from 1965-98), was 5.6 children per woman.

The KB program, designed to alter the societal mind-set that many offsprings were a bounty for the future and asserting that two children were enough, made great strides. Between 1976 and 2002, contraceptive prevalence reached 60 percent, and the fertility rate dropped to only 3.4 children by the turn of the 21st century.

The controlled population growth contributed to favorable annual economic growth, recorded above 5 percent since 1980.

However, decentralization in 2000 meant that the central government no longer directly steered the family planning efforts and targets. Experts say there has been a marked drop in the implementation of programs and attendant reduction in their effectiveness.

It is a pressing issue for Indonesia, the world'€™s fourth most populous nation with 240 million people.

'€œThe rate has been in stagnant position at 2.6 since 2003. Ideally, the rate should keep decreasing for demographic dividend,'€ said population expert Sri Moertiningsih Adioetomo of the University of Indonesia'€™s demography institution.

Another concern is the country'€™s annual population growth, which has reached around 4.5 to 5 million new births.

'€œIn the next 15 to 20 years, these newborns will enter the workforce. Many things need to be considered, such as health and education facilities for them. The condition will also lead to overpopulation, which in turn create limited job opportunities.'€

The median age at first marriage and the onset age of puberty are also decreasing, both unfortunately conducive to population increase.

'€œData shows that the level of population growth increased from 1.34 during the 1990-2000 census to 1.49 during the 2000-2010 census. The number seems to be small, but it'€™s very significant for a country with over 240 million people.'€

Unlike during the strictly controlled New Order, there is a lack of focus of family planning programs today.

'€œIt'€™s time for the central government to create public awareness and promote family planning program especially in regencies across the country,'€ she said.

She argues there are five crucial issues that need to be addressed in order to revitalize family planning programs: building a legitimate institutional body that specifically focuses on the programs; local regulations; commitment in the form of budget allocation; effective training for midwives and educating young couples on the benefits of small nuclear families.

'€œIt is important that the government creates the demand for family planning. This can be done by means of various campaigns, such as having public clinics launch campaigns on family planning programs and promoting the programs through education sessions,'€ Sri said.

According to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), Indonesia'€™s population has the potential to grow by nearly a third, reaching 305 million people by 2035.

'€œGood family planning programs will help curb the population at a favorable level. So, it'€™s time to revitalize the programs,'€ she said.

Women inclusive

Ninuk Widyantoro, founder of Women'€™s Health Foundation, said a rights-based perspective for women should be a main consideration when implementing the family planning program.

She faulted the single-minded focus on decreasing birthrates during the Soeharto era.

'€œThe focus was merely on the demographic issue, and how to decrease the number of population for a better economy was what mattered most. They ignored the most crucial aspect in the program, which is women'€™s health,'€ she said.

'€œInstead of involving competent counselors in the programs, the government gave incentives to high ranking officials, from heads of districts and regents to governors, so as to increase the use of contraception among public. As a result, many women experienced side effects, like bleeding as a result of using the Intra Uterine Device (IUD). The maternal mortality was high during this era, about 800 per 100,000 births.'€

The 1979 Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), which was agreed in the Tehran Conference on Human Rights in 1968, highlights the right to family planning. It'€™s the right for individuals and couples to make decisions on time, number and spacing of their children.

'€œMore than 90 percent of contraceptive users are women. This means that a woman has her rights to make such decisions as when to start having sexual intercourse, when is the right time to have a baby and how many children to have,'€ Ninuk said.

She said the government must think of effective approaches that can raise public awareness on issues such as sexual reproductive health and rights.

'€œThere are many people who still think that having a family planning program is merely about avoiding pregnancy when having sexual intercourse. We need to educate the public about other issues, from understanding the process of pregnancy to the social impact of having a lot of children,'€ she said.

This country has great potential to be one of the world'€™s major players, Ninuk conceded, '€œbut we won'€™t anywhere without improvements in education and human resources. The growing population can be a burden. So, it'€™s time for the government to create effective family planning programs'€.

_______________________________

Partners for Change

This page is produced by The Jakarta Post in cooperation with Company-Community Partnerships for Health in Indonesia (CCPHI). It promotes best practices in community partnerships. For more information, contact the Supplements & Supplemental Products section at supplement@thejakartapost.com.

{

Your Opinion Matters

Share your experiences, suggestions, and any issues you've encountered on The Jakarta Post. We're here to listen.

Enter at least 30 characters
0 / 30

Thank You

Thank you for sharing your thoughts. We appreciate your feedback.