Family Care International (FCI) strives to ensure that all women have access to comprehensive, high-quality reproductive and maternal health care counseling and services that include family planning information, so that they can make informed decisions about their reproductive and sexual lives. Of the 210 million pregnancies that occur every year, approximately 38% are unintended or mistimed. Unintended pregnancies occur for a number of reasons, the most common being the non-use or incorrect use of contraceptives, or contraceptive failure.

Increasing Access to Emergency Contraception (EC)

FCI has been working with the Latin American Consortium for Emergency Contraception (LACEC) to advocate for women’s access to EC in throughout Latin America. With members of LACEC, FCI has drafted a set of materials about EC for NGOs, community groups, legislators, and government agencies working in the sexual and reproductive health and rights field.

FCI serves as the host organization of the International Consortium for Emergency Contraception (ICEC), a global membership organization seeking to expand access to emergency contraception, with a focus on developing countries.

Increasing Awareness about Family Planning and Contraceptive Methods

According to UNFPA, more than 350 million women do not have access to a choice of modern, safe, and effective contraceptive methods. FCI works with health care providers in Africa and Latin America to ensure that young people have access to family planning information, counseling, and services. In Latin America, we work with indigenous communities to raise awareness of preventing unwanted pregnancy through health outreach volunteers. In addition, FCI disseminates information about family planning and contraceptive methods in many of our publications.