Government has increased funding for family planning commodities from the initial K176 million to K200 million with an increment of K24 million.
The increment comes after White Ribbon Alliance Malawi lobbied the Parliamentary Committee on Health.
Speaking with reporters, White Ribbon Alliance Executive Director Hester Mkwinda Nyasulu commended the committee for pressuring the Minister of Finance on the funding for family planning and he asked the committee to be monitoring the funds.
“We are also requesting the Parliamentary Committee on Health to bring together Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health so that we should harmonise policy that should ensure that the girl-child is accessing family planning methods, especially for our school going girls,” he said.
In his remarks, one member of the committee, Member of Parliament for Zomba Changalume John Chikalimba, said that youths more especially in schools should be provided with family planning methods to prevent unwanted pregnancies.
He added that Malawi need leaders who are educated as such the use of family planning methods will not only prevent early pregnancies among the youths but also build their future.
In the 2020/21 national budget, the Health Sector ranks second with an allocation of K195.3 billion, representing 9.7 percent of the total budget.
