Women in low-income Kenyan neighbourhoods face unsafe abortions and increased maternal deaths due to the US government’s plan to destroy stockpiles of contraceptives, experts have told openDemocracy.
After it was previously reported that $9.7m of intrauterine devices, hormonal implants and birth control pills earmarked for countries in Africa are sitting in a warehouse in Belgium, the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) in November confirmed that a further 20 truckloads of contraceptives are being held in an unknown location in another Belgian village. Some products have become unusable due to poor storage.
All the contraceptives were intended for family planning and reproductive health initiatives in Kenya, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Zambia, and Mali. These initiatives were previously supported by the United States Agency for International Development, which Donald Trump dismantled this year.
