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n mid-November, 3,700 family planning advocates and representatives of governments, United Nations agencies, civil society organizations, academia, celebrities and promising youth leaders gathered in Kigali, Rwanda, to attend the fifth International Conference on Family Planning (ICFP).

The conference from Nov. 12 to 15 featured best practices and innovations in family planning programs, and also saw the strengthening of political and funding commitments as well as the monitoring of progress in family planning ahead of 2020. In two years, world representatives aim to ensure that all women, no matter where they live, have access to lifesaving contraceptives — a program called the Family Planning 2020 Initiative (FP2020).

Indonesia has always been regarded as one of the world’s best role models for family planning programs; others are eager to learn our lessons.

Unfortunately, no official delegates from Indonesia attended the conference — in this case, representatives from the National Population and Family Planning Agency (BKKBN) and the Health Ministry. Ironically, Indonesia hosted the last ICFP in 2016 in Bali, where President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo pledged his commitment to revitalize family development programs by increasing budgets and strengthening their legal foundation.

“President Jokowi indeed followed up on his commitment by allocating more funding for family planning,” said Jose “Oying” Rimon II, chair of ICFP’s steering committee.

Rimon added that Indonesia had successfully revitalized its stagnant family planning program in the post-reform era, after health services declined with the introduction of decentralization since 1999.

In Kigali, one of Indonesia’s accomplishments was revealed in its report entitled “FP2020: Catalyzing Collaboration, 2017-2018.” The report shows that Indonesia is among the top countries regarding government expenditure on family planning with US$196 million allocated in 2016. The budget was increased to Rp 5.5 trillion in 2018.

Indonesia was among the 69 countries that agreed to work together with partners such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the UN Population Fund, the aid organizations of the United Kingdom and the United States (UKAID, USAID) to commit to the FP2020 Initiative during the Family Planning Summit in London in 2012.

Indonesia committed to achieving an additional 2.6 million users of modern contraceptive tools and to improving family planning services. The government also committed to allocate $1.6 billion to finance family planning programs between 2015 and 2019, with additional funding of around $1.7 billion annually to be allocated by regency and municipality administrations.

After five years, Indonesia increased its budget allocation for family planning programs from $65.9 million in 2006 to $316.2 million in 2017.

The government also strengthened family planning at the regional and village levels. Since regional autonomy was introduced, such programs have depended heavily on the political commitment of regents and mayors. BKKBN no longer plays a central role as it had in the past. However, regional heads have largely treated most social and welfare programs, including family planning, as additional “charity” programs, rather than sustainable and well-structured activities with measurable results.

To prove the tangible results to the people who elected them, infrastructure projects have largely been prioritized.

To help Indonesia achieved its commitment to the FP2020 Initiative and to revitalize family planning, international and local partners have implemented the Advance Family Planning (AFP) initiative.

Supported by the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Program and the Cipta Foundation, AFP has brought together national and local government institutions, civil society groups, the private sector, professionals, religious and community leaders to support and to implement family planning.

“Family planning is crucial to create a healthy and prosperous family and community […] the program will create a qualified workforce to develop our regency,” said Cellica Nurrachadiana, regent of Karawang in West Java. She has received numerous national awards for innovative programs including inviting private sector actors to implement the Corporate Family Planning and Family Planning in Industrial Sites (Kampung KB Industri) programs.

AFP was piloted in 164 regencies and municipalities in 11 provinces including across Java, North Sumatra, West and East Nusa Tenggara, Maluku and sKalimantan.

Another striking success is the Family Planning Village program, or Kampung KB, that was first launched by Jokowi in Mertasinga village in Gunung Jati, Cirebon, West Java, in January 2016.

“At first, most people including officials viewed Kampung KB as a place to distribute contraceptive tools,” recalled Stefanus Salikin, head of the health office in Bengkayang, a far-flung regency bordering West Kalimantan and Malaysia’s Sarawak. He was citing past practices where the family planning program prioritized controversial population control targets instead of personal choices.

“Kampung KB is where all community activities take place, integrating a broad range of family planning and development activities — providing family planning services, opening up economic opportunities, healthcare, education and nutrition as well as sanitation and agricultural activities,” Salikin explained.

The government plans to establish 13,000 Kampung KB by next year, particularly in the most disadvantaged and remote places across Indonesia.

The new initiatives have drastically reversed the mindsets of bureaucrats and the public on the multiple benefits of family planning, beyond improving reproductive health and population control.

“This is the end of the coercive and top-down family planning program of the New Order style. The present program emphasizes people’s rights and full participation as well as community driven activities,” said Ardi Wijaya, 78, chief of Kampung KB Kamuning Asri in Kuningan regency, West Java.

These accomplishments are the fruit of years of hard work and the extraordinary efforts of local bureaucrats, open-minded religious and community leaders, civil society groups, midwives, doctors, advocates, field workers and vibrant youth communities. The strong support of international partners also play a crucial role in scaling up family planning programs.

But skipping global gatherings such as the Kigali event not only shows our government’s lack of appreciation for the continuing support of international partners; more importantly it shows Indonesia’s failure to honor all devoted people across the archipelago who have made the country’s family planning a success story.
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