Head of the National Population and Family Planning Agency (BKKBN), Dr. Hasto Wardoyo, Sp.OG. (K), has advised all families to carefully plan pregnancies to help prevent childhood stunting.
Families must plan pregnancies using the Family Planning (KB) program, he said. This would allow parents to space children and have time to prepare for meeting their needs from pregnancy till birth, including the nutritional needs for children, he explained.
“Therefore, couples of childbearing age are expected to get sufficient information and socialization of the benefits and importance of using family planning,” Wardoyo said.
The use of contraceptives is expected to reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies (KTD), maternal mortality rate (AKI), and infant mortality rate (IMR), he highlighted.
Family planning with the help of modern contraceptives is important for preventing stunting in the nation’s next generation, Wardoyo added.
In the last five years, the proportion of married women who are not participating in the KB program has consistently increased, he noted. Based on data from the National Socio-Economic Survey (Susenas), the number of married women who did not participate in the Family Planning program increased to 31.2 percent or 15.37 million women in 2020, he said.
One reason for this was the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to a decline in the capacity of reproductive health services at various health facilities, thereby limiting public access to contraceptives, he added.
This phenomenon raised the number of unwanted pregnancies in the country, he said. According to the BKKBN, the decline in the use of contraceptives among the community had an impact in the form of 500 thousand unwanted pregnancies in 2021, he added.
A high rate of unwanted pregnancies can pose several risks for women, including depression, anxiety disorders, high stress levels, and stunting in infants, he said. It can also contribute to maternal and infant mortality, he added.
Meanwhile, chairwoman of the Indonesian Midwives Association (IBI), Dr. Emi Nurjasmi, M.Kes, said the pandemic has contributed significantly to the decline in contraceptive use, thereby increasing the number of pregnancies and births.
This has raised new challenges for midwives in terms of providing qualified information and counseling regarding the importance of family planning for couples of childbearing age, she added.
“Together with other related stakeholders, we will continue to encourage the implementation of the Family Planning program. In this case, condoms can be an option for contraception that can be used by couples of childbearing age,” she informed.
Source: Antara News