Welcome to The Nonlinear Library, where we use Text-to-Speech software to convert the best writing from the Rationalist and EA communities into audio.
This is: Introducing Family Empowerment Media, publishedKen_Scheffler, Anna_Christina on the AI Alignment Forum.
Write a Review
Working towards better health, education, and economic outcomes through more informed family planning and birth spacing
TL;DR
Greater adoption of contraceptives has a lot of positive benefits. Studies indicate that radio campaigns can be highly cost-effective in increasing adoption. Our new organization will implement radio campaigns where they can have the greatest impact, starting in Nigeria. If this sounds promising to you, there are several ways you can help us move from proof of concept to full rollout.
In September, we founded Family Empowerment Media (FEM), a non-profit organization that will help people plan their families. We will provide clear, compelling, and accurate information on modern contraceptives through the radio.
We believe a well-run family planning charity focused on social and behavior change (SBC) campaigns on the radio could achieve outcomes in the realm of the most effective global health charities. Increasing access to and understanding of family planning services has been shown to have substantial positive effects on health, as well as education, income, and several other dimensions. SBC campaigns on family planning have generally been cost-effective, and a recent randomized control trial indicates that high-intensity radio-based SBC campaigns have the potential to be especially cost-effective.
This post describes (I) the challenge we aim to solve, (II) our approach, (III), our value add, and (IV) our progress and plans. We close with a quick note on (V) how you can help FEM navigate its first year.
I. The challenge: Modern contraception’s vast benefits are not fully realized due to information gaps
In countries with developing health systems, pregnancy can be a major health risk for women. According to the Guttmacher Institute, just under 300,000 women and girls in low and middle-income countries die of pregnancy-related complications each year. Pregnancy is the most common source of mortality for adolescent girls. Pregnancy is also a source of non-fatal but serious morbidity. Conditions arising from pregnancy and childbirth include obstetric fistula - which 50,000-100,000 women experience each year - postpartum anemia, and postnatal depression.
Helping women avoid unintended pregnancies is a cost-effective means of reducing maternity-related health burdens. Almost a quarter of women in low and middle-income countries want to avoid pregnancy but are not using modern contraceptives. This “unmet need” for modern contraceptives results in 85 million unintended pregnancies per year. If all women with unmet need were provided access to and used modern contraceptives 70,000 maternal deaths per year would be averted. Guttmacher estimates, “every dollar spent on contraceptive services beyond the current level would reduce the cost of pregnancy-related and newborn care by three dollars,” while helping couples realize their family planning intentions. The Copenhagen Consensus estimates that a dollar spent on access to modern contraception leads to 120 dollars of social, economic, and environmental benefits.
In addition to reducing maternity-related health issues, helping women avoid unintended pregnancies can have positive effects on education, income generation, and children’s welfare (Figure 1). For example, a study in Indonesia found that providing access to family planning was three times more powerful than improving school quality in keeping girls in school an extra year. Research in Colombia found that girls with access to family planning clinics were 7% more likely to participate in the formal workforce as adults. More long term, a Brookings Institution study examined the effect of providing access to family planning progra...
view more