Men as Supportive Partners in Reproductive Health: Moving from Rhetoric to Reality

Abstract

This book builds on presentations of the Workshop on Men as Supportive Partners in Reproductive and Sexual Health held in Kathmandu, Nepal, in 1998. By analyzing the experiences of nongovernmental organizations across India, this publication reviews important concerns that should inform the discourse on male partnership. The previous views of reaching men as contraceptive users and removing them as impediments to women’s efforts to control fertility are too limited. The argument is not whether men and women should use family planning, but rather the extent to which men can become supportive of women’s reproductive and sexual rights and actively take part in responsible and healthy reproductive behavior. Applied research is needed to learn how to stimulate and support positive and healthy sexual partnerships between women and men. It is important to demonstrate that contraceptive safety and continuation, safer sexual behaviors, use of reproductive health services, reduction in morbidity and mortality, and other health outcomes can be improved through the positive involvement of men as supportive partners and responsible parents. This publication provides a wealth of information on male partnership issues.