"Religious Institutions and SRHR Programming: Engagement, Opposition, and Common Ground"

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Religious institutions — churches, mosques, temples, synagogues, and faith-based organisations (FBOs) — play a complex and often contradictory role in sexual and reproductive health. They are simultaneously among the largest providers of healthcare in the developing world (faith-based facilities deliver an estimated 20–40 per cent of health services in many SSA countries), powerful shapers of social norms around sexuality and reproduction, potential allies for maternal health and GBV prevention, and, in some cases, the most effective opponents of contraception access, comprehensive sexuality education, abortion, and LGBTQ+ rights.

UNFPA engages with religious institutions and leaders across its programming: partnering with faith-based health providers on maternal health, engaging religious leaders in community mobilisation against harmful practices (FGM, child marriage), dialogue on family planning within religious frameworks, and navigating religious opposition to CSE and reproductive rights. This engagement requires distinguishing between religious institutions' official positions (which may oppose UNFPA's mandate on specific issues) and the diverse views of faith communities (where believers often support family planning and maternal health even when their institutional leadership does not).

The engagement is inherently political. The Holy See (Vatican) has observer status at the UN and actively opposes consensus on reproductive rights, abortion, and CSE in intergovernmental negotiations. Conservative evangelical Christian movements, particularly in the US and Africa, mobilise against UNFPA's mandate. Some Islamic authorities oppose CSE and certain contraceptive methods. Yet within each tradition, progressive voices advocate for reproductive rights and gender equality, and UNFPA has found productive partnerships with reformist religious leaders and faith-based organisations.

KEY FACTS

Faith-based health service delivery: FBOs operate approximately 20–40% of health facilities in many SSA countries (WHO/CCIH estimates); significant providers of maternal and child health
Catholic Church position: Officially opposes all "artificial" contraception (Humanae Vitae, 1968); permits only "natural family planning" (calendar/rhythm methods); opposes abortion and CSE
Catholic health networks: Largest non-governmental health provider globally; networks like CHAG (Ghana), CHAM (Malawi), BUFMAR (DRC) deliver significant volumes of maternal health care — but may not offer modern contraception
Islamic positions: Vary by jurisprudence; many Islamic scholars permit contraception within marriage (especially for birth spacing); opposition to abortion varies; some scholars support sex education within Islamic frameworks
Evangelical opposition: Conservative evangelical movements (Focus on the Family, Alliance Defending Freedom, C-Fam) actively oppose UNFPA's mandate on CSE, abortion, and LGBTQ+ inclusion; influential in US policy and African politics
Progressive religious voices: Catholics for Choice, Muslims for Progressive Values, progressive mainline Protestant churches, and Reform Jewish movements support SRHR rights
Holy See at the UN: Observer status; actively participates in GA, ECOSOC, and conference negotiations; seeks to restrict language on reproductive rights, CSE, and SOGI
Religious leaders as allies: UNFPA has partnered with religious leaders on child marriage prevention (Islamic scholars in West Africa issuing fatwas against child marriage), maternal health promotion (pastors encouraging facility delivery), and GBV prevention (religious leaders condemning violence)
FGM and religion: FGM is practised across religions (Islam, Christianity, animism); religious leaders are critical for community abandonment of FGM; many Islamic scholars have confirmed FGM has no basis in the Quran

DETAIL

Models of Engagement

UNFPA's engagement with religious institutions follows several models:

Partnership for service delivery: UNFPA partners with faith-based health networks to strengthen maternal health and EmONC capacity. In countries like DRC, Malawi, and Ghana, faith-based facilities are the primary providers in rural areas. UNFPA provides training, supplies, and quality improvement support. These partnerships typically avoid the most contested services (contraception, abortion-related care) while strengthening areas of common ground (safe motherhood, newborn care).

Religious leader mobilisation: UNFPA engages religious leaders as community influencers for behaviour change — encouraging facility delivery, promoting birth spacing (which most religious traditions accept), opposing child marriage and FGM, and condemning GBV. Examples include: Islamic scholars in Niger and Mali issuing declarations against child marriage; Christian leaders in East Africa promoting maternal health; interfaith dialogues on reproductive health.

Dialogue on contested issues: On family planning, UNFPA has found that engaging religious leaders in respectful dialogue — acknowledging theological concerns while presenting health evidence — can shift positions. Many religious leaders, when presented with evidence on maternal mortality from closely spaced pregnancies, support birth spacing even if their tradition officially opposes "artificial" contraception.

Navigating opposition: When religious institutions actively oppose UNFPA's mandate (as the Vatican does at the UN), UNFPA maintains respect while defending its positions. In practice, UNFPA does not engage in theological debates but insists on rights-based principles and evidence-based programming. The organisation also supports progressive voices within religious traditions that advocate for SRHR.

Contested Areas

Contraception: The Catholic Church's official prohibition of artificial contraception is the most well-known religious-SRHR conflict. In practice, Catholic women use contraception at rates similar to the general population in most countries (Guttmacher data), creating a gap between official doctrine and lived experience. UNFPA works around this by partnering with non-Catholic facilities for FP and engaging Catholic health networks on maternal health.

Comprehensive sexuality education: Conservative religious groups are the primary opposition to CSE in many countries, arguing that CSE promotes promiscuity, undermines parental authority, and imposes Western values. UNFPA's response emphasises evidence (CSE delays sexual debut, reduces risk-taking) and adapts terminology (some countries use "family life education" or "life skills" instead of CSE).

Abortion: Religious opposition to abortion is the most politically potent barrier to expanding access. UNFPA's carefully calibrated position — not promoting abortion as a method of family planning, but supporting safe abortion where legal and post-abortion care everywhere — is designed to maintain engagement while defending health principles.

CURRENT STATUS

Religious institutions remain simultaneously partners and opponents in SRHR programming — often the same institution on different issues
UNFPA's faith engagement work is most developed in SSA and the Arab States
Conservative religious opposition to SRHR continues to be politically influential, particularly in the US (affecting UNFPA funding) and at the UN
Progressive religious voices for SRHR are growing but less well-funded and less politically organised than conservative movements
The pragmatic approach — partnering on common ground (maternal health, GBV prevention) while defending rights on contested issues (FP, CSE) — remains UNFPA's operational model

SOURCES

Olivier, Jill et al.: "Understanding the roles of faith-based health-care providers in Africa" (Lancet, 2015)
Catholics for Choice: Publications on Catholic women's reproductive health decisions
UNFPA: "Engaging Faith-Based Organizations in SRHR" programme documentation
C-Fam (Center for Family and Human Rights): Publications representing conservative opposition to UNFPA — for context on opposition arguments
UNFPA-UNICEF Joint Programme on FGM: Religious engagement component