CLA Ensures Greater Access to Contraceptives in Bangladesh

Stock-outs of essential health commodities, including contraceptives, at the service delivery point (SDP) level have often been attributed to poor recording and reporting of stock levels. In turn, a lack of complete and accurate data can result in inaccurate forecasting of commodities and decrease access to contraceptives, which ultimately increases the risk of unwanted pregnancies and endangers women’s and children’s lives.

Bangladesh has made substantial gains over the last few years in reducing fertility rates which has been one of the contributing factors to lower the maternal mortality rate. To sustain these achievements, the country needs to ensure that women and their partners have access to a range of safe and high-quality contraceptives at SDPs. The USAID-funded Systems for Improved Access to Pharmaceuticals and Services (SIAPS) Program, implemented by Management Sciences for Health, collaborated with the Directorate General of Family Planning (DGFP) to develop an electronic logistics management information system (eLMIS) and incorporated an SDP dashboard module that tracks stock for family planning (FP) commodities from the national to the SDP level.

To ensure dedicated use of this system, it was crucial that DGFP officials shift from a paper-based system to a modern automated system for their day-to-day logistics activities. This required a major capacity-building program to enhance DGFP officials’ skills and knowledge to be able to handle an electronic tool effectively and ensure better health outcomes.