Investing in voluntary family planning (FP) services offers substantial benefits for the well-being of people and national development in Sierra Leone. Access to FP is vital for reducing unintended pregnancies, which in turn prevents child and maternal deaths and unsafe abortions, and allows women and girls to realize their full potential.
Despite increased total demand and a rise in demand satisfied by modern methods between 2013 and 2019, the unmet need for FP in Sierra Leone remained consistently high at about 25 per cent. The majority of FP services are currently funded by external sources, with minimal government support.
This policy brief outlines three investment scenarios to increase the Modern Contraceptive Prevalence Rate (mCPR) by 2030:
- Business-as-usual: mCPR reaches 33.0%.
- Achievable: mCPR reaches 43.1%.
- Ambitious: mCPR reaches 49.5%.
Under the ambitious scenario, an incremental investment of US$65.1 million is required between 2024 and 2030. This investment is projected to:
- Avert a cumulative total of 3.10 million unintended pregnancies.
- Avoid more than 10,000 maternal deaths.
- Avoid nearly 635,000 unsafe abortions.
- Generate economic benefits estimated at $638 million.
- Generate $9.8 for every dollar invested.
These figures confirm that expanding FP services delivers significant returns for individuals and Sierra Leone at large. Financing options to close the funding gap include generating additional tax revenue, improving efficiency in resource use, fulfilling international commitments to the health sector, and seeking greater external support.
