Making Family Planning Count
Making Family Planning Count is an initiative of the Population Division to improve the quantity, quality, transparency and accessibility of family planning indicators and the population data that underlie models of the determinants and impacts of use of family planning. The goal is to improve the global community's ability to track progress in meeting the need for family planning and the accessibility and transparency of the underlying demographic data required for estimating family planning indicators. The work supports advocacy and accountability efforts to strengthen the political commitment to global health, including initiatives such as and global monitoring of Target 3.7. to "ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health-care services, including for family planning" under the . The project has been funded by the , Grants No. INV-072717 (2025-2028), INV-033016 (2021-2025), OPP1183453 (2018-2021), and OPP1110679 (2015-2017).
Data and tools
- E-Learning for SDG indicator 3.7.1 [PowerPoint] [Video]
- E-Learning for SDG indicator 3.7.2 [PowerPoint] [Video]
- World Contraceptive Use
- Family Planning Indicators
- Women of Reproductive Age Who Are Married or in a Union 2024
- World Marriage 2019. Dataset
Selected Population Division publications
Highlights
- World Family Planning 2022
- World Family Planning 2020 Highlights
- World Fertility and Family Planning 2020 Highlights
- World Family Planning 2017 Highlights
Data booklet
- Contraceptive Use by Method 2019 Data Booklet
- Family Planning and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development 2020 Data Booklet
Technical paper
- Corker, J., J. Molitoris and V. Kantorov谩 (2026). Assessment of Family Planning Indicators in Global Monitoring Frameworks. United Nations, Department of Economics and Social Affairs, Population Division, Technical Paper No. 蘑菇视频 DESA/POP/2026/TP/No.12.
- Gonnella, G., and others (2025). Cohort fertility measures from the World Population Prospects. United Nations, Department of Economics and Social Affairs, Population Division, Technical Paper No. 蘑菇视频 DESA/POP/2025/TP/No.11.
- Molitoris, J., V. Kantorov谩 and P. Gerland (2025). Assessing the impact of the loss of the Demographic and Health Surveys on global population and family planning data and estimates and on population research. United Nations, Department of Economics and Social Affairs, Population Division, Technical Paper No. 蘑菇视频 DESA/POP/2025/TP/No.10.
- Chao, F., and others (2023). Estimating age-specific fertility rate in the World Population Prospects: a Bayesian modelling approach. United Nations, Department of Economics and Social Affairs, Population Division, Technical Paper No. 蘑菇视频 DESA/POP/2023/TP/No.6.
- Methods for estimating and projecting key family planning indicators among all women of reproductive age. Technical Paper No. 2018/2
- Who collects what on the current use of contraception? Technical Paper No. 2017/12
- Sexual activity by marital status and age. Technical Paper No. 2017/11
Population factsheet and policy briefs
- Global progress in satisfying the need for family planning. Population Facts No. 2019/3
- Tracking global progress in family planning. Population Facts No. 2017/11
- The New Landscape of Fertility and Family Planning 30 Years After Cairo and Beijing. 蘑菇视频 DESA Policy Brief No. 172
Selected journal articles
- Gonnella, G., and others (forthcoming). 鈥淭he Long-Term Trends in Cohort Fertility: Global, Regional and National Estimates and Projections for Cohorts Born in 1935鈥�2055鈥� Population and Development Review
- Kantorov谩, V., and others (2026). A Global Perspective on Trends in the Use of Withdrawal and Periodic Abstinence for Pregnancy Prevention. Population and Development Review, vol. 52, Issue 2, pp. 585-612. .
- Chao, F., and others. (2026). 鈥淟evels and trends in fertility rates among adolescents aged 10鈥�14 and 15鈥�19 in 201 countries and areas from 1950 to 2023鈥� BMJ Global Health. .
- Molitoris, J., and V. Kantorov谩 (2025). World Contraceptive Use: A Global Compilation of Survey-Based Estimates on Contraceptive Use by Method, Age, and Marital Status. Studies in Family Planning, 1-11. .
- Bearak, J. M., and others (2025). Undesired Births, Contraception, and Abortion Before and After the Cairo Consensus: Trends in Conditional Undesired Birth Rates and the Impact of Contraception and Abortion. Studies in Family Planning, vol. 56, Issue 2, pp. 274-300. .
- Wheldon, M., and others. (forthcoming). 鈥淐aught in Transit: Identifying Stalls, Upswings and Reversals in Fertility Transitions using a Probabilistic Approach鈥� Demography. .
- Kantorov谩, V. and J. Bongaarts (2024), Contraceptive Change and Fertility Transition. Population and Development Review, 50: 459-485. .
- Wheldon, M., and others (2024). A new look at contraceptive prevalence plateaus in sub-Saharan Africa: A probabilistic approach. Demographic Research, vol. 50, Issue 31, pp. 899鈥�928. Available at .
- Bearak, J. M., L. Alkema, V. Kantorov谩 and J. Casterline (2023). Alignment between Desires and Outcomes among Women Wanting to Avoid Pregnancy: A Global Comparative Study of 鈥淐onditional鈥� Unintended Pregnancy Rates. Studies in Family Planning, vol. 54, Issue 1, pp. 265-280. Available at .
- Biddlecom, A., and others (2023). Setting Health Targets Using Information from Probabilistic Projections: A Research Brief on an Application to Contraceptive Coverage. Population Research and Policy Review, vol. 42, Issue 13. Available at .
- Molitoris, J., and others (2023). Early Childbearing and Child Marriage: An Update. Studies in Family Planning, forthcoming. Available at .
- Dasgupta, Aisha, and others (2022). . Demographic Research, vol. 46, Issue 4. Available at
- Kantorov谩, V., and others (2021). . PLOS One, vol. 16, Issue 3. Available at
- Dasgupta, A., V. Kantorov谩 and P. Ueffing (2020). . Gates Open Res, vol. 4, No. 102. Available at .
- Kantorov谩, V., M. Wheldon, P. Ueffing and A. Dasgupta (2020). . PLOS Medicine, vol. 17, Issue 2. Available at .
- Ueffing, P., A. Dasgupta and V. Kantorov谩 (2019). . Journal of Biosocial Science, vol. 52, Issue 6, pp. 860-884. Available at .
- Biddlecom, A., and others (2018). . New York: Guttmacher Institute, doi.org/10.1363/2018.29732.
- Kantorov谩, V., and others (2017).. Studies in Family Planning, vol. 48, No. 3, pp. 223-233. Available at .
- Alkema, L., and others (2013). . The Lancet, vol. 381, No. 9878, pp.1642-1652. Available at .
Where are the project results used
These data compilations and estimates and projections of family planning and related indicators are used throughout the family planning sector. They are crucial for the ability of other organizations to disseminate data, advocate for improved access to family planning and used in research on the determinants and impacts of improved access to family planning. Users include international organizations, research institutes, academia, media, civil society and others. For example:
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