#MakeItHappen: Let Evidence, Not Ideology, be the Basis of the New Sustainable Development Goals

March 10th, 2015

By: Ann M. Starrs, Guttmacher Institute; Originally posted on Thomson Reuters Foundation
Any views expressed in this article are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.
“Let the 21st century be the century of women,” UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has famously said. “The empowerment and rights of girls and women must be at the heart of everything we do.”
“Make it happen,” one can easily imagine women from around the world saying to UN member states in response. Fittingly, “Make It Happen” is a motto for this year’s International Women’s Day.
But we’re not there yet.
In September 2015, UN delegates will come together in New York to decide on the Sustainable Development Goals, which will drive the global agenda on social, economic and environmental development for the next 15 years. Work thus far has resulted in 17 draft goals and 169 specific targets.
While none of the goals explicitly mentions women’s health, there is no question that universal access to contraception and other sexual and reproductive health services is vital to achieving many of them. How can we end poverty if women and couples cannot determine whether or when to have a child or how many children to have? How can we ensure equitable education for all if so many girls drop out of school due to unwanted pregnancy? How can we achieve gender equality if women’s reproductive rights are not fulfilled?
The answer to all of these questions is the same: We can’t. These are the questions that must be asked in 2015 as UN delegates and civil society groups negotiate a final version of the Sustainable Development Goals.
For negotiations to effectively take women’s well-being into account, they must start with the basic facts. New research from the Guttmacher Institute shows that a shockingly high number of women in developing regions still do not receive the services they need to protect their health and that of their newborns. Currently, 225 million women who want to avoid pregnancy are not using modern contraceptives, and 43 million pregnant women each year are not giving birth in a health facility. And while increased access to antiretroviral therapy has changed the course of the AIDS epidemic globally, nearly half of women who need treatment for HIV do not receive it.
The consequences are devastating: 74 million unintended pregnancies, 28 million unplanned births and 20 million unsafe abortions each year. Some 290,000 women and 2.9 million newborns die each year, largely because of the lack of access to good-quality care during childbirth. In addition, 273,000 infants become infected with HIV during pregnancy and delivery or breast-feeding.
The payoff of providing all women and their newborns in developing regions with the services and care they need is tremendous: Unintended pregnancies would drop by 52 million; there would be 200,000 fewer women and 2 million fewer newborns dying every year; and new HIV infections among newborns would be almost eliminated. Fully satisfying women’s need for modern contraception would also make health care investments more affordable overall. For every additional dollar invested in contraception in developing regions, the cost of pregnancy-related care—including HIV care for women and newborns—is reduced by about $1.50.
Beyond these striking health gains there is a huge payoff in terms of other social and economic returns to meeting women’s reproductive health needs. Girls and young women are more likely to be able to stay in school, which will in turn improve their future labor force participation and earning potential. In turn, household savings and assets receive a boost. Poverty is reduced, living conditions improve and communities are undeniably better off when women can fully participate and contribute. All of these benefits have direct impacts on a spectrum of other development goals.
We have clear evidence that investing in sexual and reproductive health benefits women, their families, their communities and their nations. Women absolutely need to be at the center of true sustainable development.
Make it happen.