Tens of millions of women may be unable to access contraception and millions more girls could be married off or subjected to female genital mutilation FGM as a result of the pandemic, researchers said. Every three months of lockdown could result in 15 million more cases of domestic abuse than would normally be expected, according to the UNFPA, the U.
Many countries have already reported spikes in calls to domestic abuse hotlines. At the same time the lockdowns are making it far harder for services and charities to reach women isolated at home. The figure would rise to 7 million unplanned pregnancies if restrictions continue for six months, according to the study carried out with Johns Hopkins University, Victoria University in Australia and global health organisation Avenir Health. Women may also avoid visiting clinics due to infection fears or because of restrictions on movement.
The pandemic is also disrupting supply chains. Many types of contraceptive are expected to run out within the next six months in more than a dozen poorer countries, UNFPA warned.
Researchers also predicted there could be an extra 13 million child marriages and another 2 million cases of FGM in the next decade as the pandemic stymies global efforts to end both practices. Deepening poverty caused by a global recession could also drive more families to marry off their daughters early, they said.
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