Health experts warn family planning cuts could threaten Senegalese fishing community: 'Everything is linked to the sea'

Coastal towns like those in Senegal are increasingly impacted by storms and flooding, leading to damaged homes. Their fishing incomes and food security, meanwhile, have been weakened by industrial overharvesting and foreign operations. Now, according to The Guardian, they may also be losing out on access to essential family planning services.

Earlier this year — and just around the time the United States dismantled much of its own international aid — United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced cuts to funding that has helped sustain numerous global health programs. The cuts are reportedly intended to shift funds toward defense spending.

Some of these cuts could impact MSI Reproductive Choices, a UK-based organization improving access to abortion and contraception in countries around the world. Midwife Amy Mbaye told The Guardian that MSI is the only organization that has regularly visited the clinic in Joal in Western Senegal. There, where abortion is illegal, the group helps to supply short- and long-acting contraceptives that help individuals space their pregnancies if they want to — supporting reproductive agency, health outcomes, and the ability to navigate a changing financial landscape.

“Everything is linked to the sea,” Mbaye said. “Too often you will call a woman to come for a checkup and she will say, ‘There’s nothing coming out from the sea so we don’t have enough, I can’t come.’"

Family planning and other critical care can cost more than a week's worth of income in the absence of programs from groups like MSI. With coastal economies like Joal's impacted by flood-damaged infrastructure and overharvested fish stocks, the ecosystemic, financial, and health challenges can compound.

Back-to-back pregnancies are far more common in areas lacking access to voluntary contraception, and they can threaten birth outcomes and maternal health, including increasing the risks of anemia and nutrient depletion. Declining fish stocks can affect family nutrition too — at the same time, they're impacting household incomes and driving dangerous economic migrations.

Meanwhile, high costs aren't the only obstacle to care. As The Guardian reported, MSI's outreach teams help to ensure access even when extreme weather events, such as floods, cut residents off from clinics. Previous analysis from MSI found that "across 26 climate-impacted countries … since 2011, an estimated 11.5 million women have had their access to contraception disrupted due to climate-related displacement."

Cutting funds for groups like MSI could further disrupt these services, particularly if flooding and other extreme weather events intensify. Just in early October, heavy rainfall caused the Senegal River to overflow, affecting close to 4,000 people, damaging homes, and closing roads, according to the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Operations.

But global organizations focused on improving access to health care are aiming to get creative and remain resilient as they navigate U.S. and UK funding cuts. At the upcoming International Conference on Family Planning, held this November in Bogotá in Colombia, numerous sessions will address the topic of sustainable financial solutions.

“We cannot afford complacency — women and girls are counting on us," said Diene Keita, executive director of the United Nations Population Fund, in an ICFP press release. "Let’s use the evidence from Bogotá to shape policies that uphold their rights and enable them to forge a healthy, prosperous future."