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Abstract

Reproductive health including family planning (HTML) 
Guest,Philip
Asia-Pacific Population Journal 18(2): 55-79
Publication date: 2003

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This paper reviews the role of family planning in reproductive health in the Asian and Pacific region since the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in 1994. It also identifies areas in reproductive health that should be priorities over the next decade. The Asian and Pacific region has made impressive advances in implementing the recommendations of ICPD. Even though concern has been expressed that an emphasis on reproductive health would diminish the role of family planning, the experience in the region over the last decade has been that the integration of family planning into expanded reproductive health programmes that provide women and men with choice in planning their reproductive lives did not lead to reversals in fertility decline. There remain several areas where recommendations from the Programme of Action have faced difficulties in implementation and where more attention is required. The development of adolescent reproductive health programmes has been hampered by the widespread belief that unmarried adolescents should not be exposed to information and/or services related to reproductive health. Entrenched systems that support gender inequality restrict reproductive choices available to women. Additional attention also needs to be placed on the interrelationships between sexual and reproductive health.

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