International Rescue Committee (IRC)

Family planning in crisis zones

Photos: 
Burmese mother with her newborn daughter at a refugee camp in Thailand
Woman walks through the desert outside a refugee camp in Chad
Mother and newborn rest in Liberia
Mother and baby South Sudan
Two clients of IRC family planning program in DR Congo
Health care workers in an IRC-supported clinic in Democratic Republic of Congo
<p>In remote areas, the ability to counsel women on contraception options can be as important as providing medical service. Health care workers in Pakistan&rsquo;s northwestern Nowshera district use educational materials written in the local language to help women decide whether contraception will benefit them and, if so, which method would be most practical.</p>
A local Muslim leader educates men in a Chad refugee camp about family planning
A demonstration of IUD insertion on an anatomic training model
A midwife carries family planning supplies at a refugee camp in Chad
Midwives with healthy newborns in Congo
Photo: Peter Biro/IRC

Women in war zones and communities recovering from disaster have an especially high risk of dying in childbirth. When health systems collapse amid chaos, women are left without access to lifesaving care, including family planning services that can help them avoid unwanted and potentially life-threatening pregnancies. The IRC is working to safeguard the health of millions of women and children in some of the world’s toughest places.