Truly focus on education and health programs, so Aceh's people have educated, well-trained, skilled, and healthy human resourcesJakarta (ANTARA) - Head of the National Population and Family Planning Agency (BKKBN) Hasto Wardoyo stated that the 29th National Family Day in 2022 was a momentum to improve family planning program services for postpartum mothers.
"Postpartum without the family planning program can hamper efforts to eradicate stunting. We can eradicate stunting with family planning after postpartum to achieve the target," he noted in a written statement received here, Wednesday.
Wardoyo emphasized that postpartum family planning services were effective in reducing the prevalence of stunting in children since mothers partaking in family planning could reduce the number of unmet needs related to family planning.
Moreover, psychologically, he noted that a mother, who has just given birth, is not keen to immediately have another child. This period could be used to opt for contraception that can provide a gap between the births of children, he added.
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"No mothers want to give another birth in a span of one year. However, if asked about the use of contraception, only 29 percent agreed. We need to convince the other 71 percent to use contraception. It could be condoms, pills, or implants," Wardoyo remarked.
In order to increase the use of contraception, the communication strategy must use language that is easy to understand, polite, and educates the mothers. Thus, the Bangga Kencana Program implemented by BKKBN to realize qualified families in Indonesia could be achieved, he said.
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Nowadays, the stunting percentage in Indonesia reaches 24.4 percent, which is far from the standard set by the World Health Organization (WHO), at 20 percent.
Hence, Wardoyo urged all levels in each region to work proactively and utilize mass media and social media to increase knowledge of contraceptives in the community.
“Communication is very important. We will not succeed if we are silent. Look for opportunities, if not, create your own opportunities. We must remember to realize the vision of a balanced population and family,” he stated.
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Translator: Hreeloita Dharma S, Resinta S
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
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