Contraception in Nkuringo: A luxury for the few?
Contraception is hardly a luxury - but a basic human right. Yet, in Nkuringo, Uganda, contraception is not accessible to all women.
For millions of women in low and middle-income countries, contraception is not accessible. Without access to contraception, women are unable to decide when and if they become pregnant, compromising their health, livelihoods and futures. Contraception is not a luxury, but a basic human right for all women.
Eveyln would certainly agree. Growing up in Nkuringo, Uganda, Evelyn has seen the daily challenges women face. Her mother and grandmothers, and now her sisters and friends, are unable to access the resources they need to thrive. Despite the lush and beautiful landscape, Nkuringo’s women are unable to access water nearby, and have an unmet need for sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) - including safe motherhood and contraception.
In Nkuringo, a mountainous village in rural Uganda, contraception is not readily available. While women walk long distances for water every day, they are unable to access the contraception they want and need.
Women like Evelyn walk up to 2-miles per day to collect water needed for eating, drinking and bathing. Here, access to water is not physical, but largely economic. Despite the lush green landscape, many women lack the knowledge and tools to make water accessible and useable.
“Women want family planning services” says Evelyn, passionate that every woman should be able to choose the timing and spacing of her pregnancies. “We want to have more manageable amounts of children.” Many women have average of 6 - 7 children by chance and not by choice.
A short walk from home, Evelyn’s nearest clinic offers reproductive health services. Often, there is no contraception available. The clinic’s basic pharmacy shelves are empty and completely stocked out.
When the local clinic does have contraception in stock, there is often only one method available - typically an injectable contraception. An injectable is a jab given into a muscle, releasing hormones into the bloodstream that helps to prevent pregnancy for up to 3 months. But this method may not be best for Evelyn due to side effects or personal circumstances.
Evelyn tells us about her friend, determined to access a method of contraception right for her. She travelled over 20 miles by boda boda (motorbike) to a private clinic to access a contraceptive implant, a small flexible plastic rod inserted under the arm, that helps to prevent pregnancy for up to 3-years.
Saving her money for months, Evelyn’s friend paid UGX 20,000 (about £4.71) for an implant and transportation to a private clinic. A small fortune locally, Eveyln’s friend was determined to access a contraceptive choice that was right for her. But for many women in Nkuringo, this is simply a luxury she cannot afford.
The Resources to Thrive
Everyone has the right to contraception - for choice, for her health and for her future. We are currently raising vital funds to help launch our new project “Thrive: Addressing Water and Reproductive Health in Nkuringo, Uganda.” Our work will help give women like Evelyn the resources they need to thrive. We want to decrease the time children and women - especially women who are pregnant or recovering from birth - spend walking for water. We also want to ensure women in Nkuringo have access to a healthy range of contraceptive options and the knowledge needed to time and space her pregnancies.
We are working with our implementing partner Reproductive Health Uganda (RHU) to support Mobile Outreach Services to provide contraceptive services to the women of Nkuringo. Visiting Nkuringo, RHU’s Mobile Clinics will provide health camps, offering women a range of contraceptive choices all available free of charge. Equipped with our Outreach Tablets, women and girls in Nkuringo will learn more about the importance of contraception and a range of SRHR topics for their health and for their futures.