Skopje, November 21, 2022 – An event on the topic “Ensuring and respecting human rights in a world of 8 billion inhabitants – family planning as a tool for progress”, organized by the UNFPA Office in North Macedonia, the Macedonian Association of Gynecologists and Obstetricians and the Macedonian Medical Association, was held today in Skopje.

“Family planning, especially in our region, does not affect the reduction of fertility, and proof of this is the fact that fertility has been declining for the past several years, even though the rate of modern contraceptives use is one of the lowest in the world,” said Afrodita Shalja, Head of the UNFPA Office in Skopje at the opening of the event.

Whether modern methods of contraception are available to the public, including in rural areas, marginalized and vulnerable groups; whether they are included in the national health insurance plans; which family planning services are available in our country, were among the topics of the panel discussion.

Policy advancement was also discussed in order to facilitate change and encourage greater cooperation at the national and international levels, including closing the significant family planning funding gap.

Representatives of the national Ministry of Health, the Health Insurance Fund, the Ministry of Education, the Association of Journalists in the RNM, as well as doctors, specialists in gynecology and obstetrics, and representatives of medical associations from Serbia, Albania, and Kosovo (UNSCR1244) participated in the event.