Rights-Based Family Planning

Indonesia is recognized for its pioneering efforts in Family Planning (FP). With strong political leadership and government commitment, Indonesia successfully decreased unmet need for FP, increased uptake of modern contraception, and reduced fertility from the 1960s.

However, over the past decade fertility rates and contraceptive prevalence rates are stagnating, unmet need remains relatively high, and unintended adolescent pregnancies are not declining. Challenges associated with decentralization in Indonesia have impacted effective delivery of quality FP services.

UNFPA continues its support to Government by providing evidence-based advocacy and technical expertise for development, implementation, and monitoring of a Rights-Based FP Strategy, and for facilitating quality, equitable FP within the context of the Universal Health Coverage Scheme.

Following the national agenda, Indonesia joined the FP2020 global commitments to meet its people’s needs for FP.

Under the FP2020 Country Committee framework, UNFPA Indonesia supports the development, implementation and monitoring of the Rights-Based FP Strategy, recognizing that sexual and reproductive health is fundamental to individuals, couples and families and is critical for social and economic development. The strategy will help the government in delivering a programme that supports the rights of women and girls to decide, freely, and for themselves, whether, when, and how many children they want to have.
As the country is moving to a middle income country, UNFPA Indonesia has shifted its working modalities to be more strategic by providing evidence and technical advice for policy and programme improvement.
Under the direction of the National Population and Family Planning Board (BKKBN) and Ministry of Health (MOH), UNFPA Indonesia is working to ensure appropriate policy for FP under the Universal Health Coverage scheme.

The UNFPA country programme is also testing three models of contraceptive supply chain management to respond to the changing needs under the Universal Health Coverage scheme.

South-South and Triangular Cooperation: Sharing Indonesia’s best Practices with The World

Indonesia, as an emerging middle-income country and a member of the G20, envisions playing an important role leading international development cooperation. South-South Cooperation (SSC) advances Indonesia’s role, regionally and globally, sharing its successes and lessons while learning from others.

The SSC framework complements the Indonesian policy of self-reliance and partnership among all nations, as outlined in the National Medium-Term Development Plan 2015-2019.

To support this vision, UNFPA will continue its support the government in bilateral and multi-lateral South-South and Triangular (SSTC) by showcasing Indonesia’s successes in family planning, the role of religious leaders in family planning, and population data.

Current SSTC Programmes

1. Strategic Partnership with Muslim Religious Leaders (MRLs) in Family Planning (FP)

BKKBN, Ministry of State Secretariat, and UNFPA have jointly designed a training course for other developing countries on Strategic Partnership with MRLs in FP. This SSTC programme was started in 2013 and will be done yearly with 20 scholarships.

2. Comprehensive, Rights-based FP

BKKBN, and Faculty of Medicine of Gadjah Mada University (UGM) established the Center of Excellence to organize International Training on Comprehensive, Rights-based FP. The Center, located at UGM started to operate in 2015 and will continue to provide capacity building for FP service providers from other developing countries.

3. Bilateral SSTC with the Government of the Philippines

A bilateral SSTC on FP between Indonesia and the Philippines was started in 2012. Facilitated by UNFPA Country Offices, the partnership enables sharing of experiences for mutual gain of both countries.

New SSTC initiatives

1. FP Services in Universal Health Coverage (UHC)

Considering its rich experience in FP, UNFPA will provide support to Indonesia to lead the role in establishing an SSTC programme among several countries through ASEAN Secretariat to strengthen the FP component in their respective social insurance schemes to achieve the goals.

2. Harnessing the Demographic Dividend through National/Subnational Development Plans/Policies

The Government has taken concrete actions to anticipate the implication of demographic dividend by incorporating it in its current Medium Term Development Plan and puting in place policies to harness the economic benefits. Indonesia’s experience and lessons learned would be a potential area of cooperation with other developing countries experiencing similar demographic transitions.