Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters

Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters (SRHM) promotes sexual and reproductive health and rights globally. www.srhm.org

Transactional s*x in contexts of forced displacement is too often framed through narrow, moralised lenses.In the latest ...
24/02/2026

Transactional s*x in contexts of forced displacement is too often framed through narrow, moralised lenses.

In the latest SRHM Podcast, Eszter Kismődi speaks with Dr Shirin Heidari and Professor Monica A. Onyango about their multi-country study, Survival Strategies and Health Repercussions in Forced Displacement.

Drawing on research from Jordan, Lebanon, Türkiye, Greece and Switzerland, they unpack how transactional s*x emerges within conditions of legal precarity, housing insecurity, restrictive asylum regimes and shrinking humanitarian space.

👉The episode challenges simplistic binaries of “choice” versus “force” and highlights urgent s*xual and reproductive health consequences.

🎧 Listen now: Transactional S*x and Forced Displacement (36 minutes)
https://www.srhm.org/news/survival-strategies-and-health-repercussions-in-forced-displacement-transactional-s*x-in-focus/

📢 New Letter to the EditorThe African Coalition for Research and Communication on Abortion: shifting power, building cap...
20/02/2026

📢 New Letter to the Editor

The African Coalition for Research and Communication on Abortion: shifting power, building capacity, defending rights

Unsafe abortion remains a preventable cause of maternal mortality across Africa, yet research leadership and funding too often sit outside the continent.

This Letter introduces the African Coalition for Research and Communication on Abortion (ACORCA–COARCA), a bilingual, Africa-led coalition working to shift agenda-setting power, strengthen research capacity, and defend reproductive rights through rigorous, policy-relevant evidence. Launched at the International Conference on Family Planning (ICFP) 2025, the Coalition is building a sustainable and collaborative abortion research ecosystem rooted in equity and African leadership.

🎙️ In a recent SRHM Podcast episode, Eszter Kismődi spoke with Naa Dodoo, Ramatou Ouedraogo and Béniel Agossou about ACORCA’s vision for an Africa where every woman and girl can access safe, high-quality abortion services without stigma or fear.

🔗 Listen here: https://www.srhm.org/news/acorca-building-an-african-led-movement-for-safe-abortion/

🔗 Read the full Letter: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/26410397.2026.2622222

💌 Send us your love letters ❤️ This Valentine’s Day and World Condom Day, we are celebrating pleasure, protection and li...
13/02/2026

💌 Send us your love letters

❤️ This Valentine’s Day and World Condom Day, we are celebrating pleasure, protection and liberation.

🎧 LISTEN HERE
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0RQPdPLFbpnuUdwBORQJmL
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/s*xual-and-reproductive-health-matters-podcast/id1558099164
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovKIAWtTLL4

💙 In our latest podcast episode, we spotlight the editorial of SRHM’s Pleasure Collection, written by Anne Philpott and Paromita Vohra and developed in collaboration with The Pleasure Project and Agents of Ishq. The editorial is read by Anne and Elena Ascione with an introduction by SRHM's Chief Executive, Eszter Kismodi.

This is a call for love letters.

❤️ “We look forward to getting to know you better… your multifaceted desires, your pleasures, what turns you on and makes you tick.”
“Send in your love letters. Because Pleasure is Progress. Pleasure Matters.”

💙 The editorial invites us to be more specific, more granular, more true to life. To start with lived experience. To flip what we think counts as credible or scientific. To celebrate those who feel pleasure, who eroticise safer s*x, who live the impact of policy in their bodies.

👉Pleasure and protection are not opposites. Evidence shows that when s*x feels good, condom use increases.

💌 Listen wherever you find your podcasts. Then write to us. Send your love letters.

Send your papers, blogs, poetry, podcast ideas, art as we celebrate s*xual pleasure as a key aspect of s*xual and reproductive health and rights for all.

Read the editorial and explore the Pleasure Collection at srhm.org.

📄 New study: “Abortion stigma amongst the public in high-income countries: a mixed-method systematic review”Jana Niemann...
10/02/2026

📄 New study: “Abortion stigma amongst the public in high-income countries: a mixed-method systematic review”
Jana Niemann, Marie Bernard, Dennis Jepsen, Nadja Freymüller, Laura Weinhold, Céline Miani & Claudia Luck-Sikorski

➡️ https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/26410397.2026.2622203

👉 Public attitudes play a central role in shaping and sustaining abortion stigma in high-income countries by reinforcing moral norms and symbolic condemnation, affecting both personal experience and access to care.

🌎 This mixed-method systematic review updates existing evidence on how stigma is enacted and experienced, showing that it remains prevalent at moderate levels and is linked to religiosity, political conservatism, lower income and male gender.

📊 Qualitative findings highlight stereotypes, verbal harassment and social exclusion across diverse settings. The authors call for targeted, group-specific stigma reduction strategies and improved measurement tools.

🌍 National research leadership is essential for generating knowledge that is locally relevant, especially in advancing g...
09/02/2026

🌍 National research leadership is essential for generating knowledge that is locally relevant, especially in advancing gender equality in s*xual and reproductive health and rights. A new scoping review examines 45 primary research articles from Africa (2012–2022), looking at authorship, geographic and institutional contexts, and funding sources.

📊 Findings reveal persistent imbalances: 67% of first authors and 57% of last authors are based outside Africa, and one-fifth of papers include no local authors at all. South African authors dominate the continent, making up 22% of first authors and 29% of last authors, while under 10% of research funding comes from Africa—entirely from South Africa. The rest originates from high-income countries.

⚖️ The study highlights the urgent need for local ownership and leadership of research, increased domestic investment, and strategies to address disparities across African regions. Strengthening African-led research is crucial for evidence that truly responds to local needs and advances gender equity.

📖 Read the full paper by Woldekidan Amde, Kéfilath Bello, Tanya Jacobs, TK Sundari Ravindran & Asha S. George for a deep dive into these patterns and their implications.
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/26410397.2026.2616137

🔍 Contraceptive users’ behaviours can reveal whether methods truly meet their needs and support their reproductive goals...
06/02/2026

🔍 Contraceptive users’ behaviours can reveal whether methods truly meet their needs and support their reproductive goals. This study looks at how often users discontinue contraception, how long methods are used, whether people switch methods, and what happens when contraceptive failure occurs.

📊 Focusing in particular on IUDs and implants, which are increasingly popular in sub-Saharan Africa, the findings show that contraceptive failure may be under-reported and that these methods may fail more often than previously believed. Compared to users of other methods, IUD and implant users are less likely to switch or discontinue use.

⚠️ Following contraceptive failure, IUD and implant users are more likely to experience a pregnancy termination than users of other methods. By examining these patterns, the study centres bodily and reproductive autonomy, highlights the importance of user-centred contraceptive counselling, and supports health systems to better anticipate demand for reproductive and maternal health services.

📖 Read the full paper to explore the implications for policy and practice: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/26410397.2025.2603740

📅 6 February – International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Ge***al Mutilation🎧 On this important day, don’t miss our ...
06/02/2026

📅 6 February – International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Ge***al Mutilation

🎧 On this important day, don’t miss our podcast episode exploring Female Ge***al Mutilation in Africa: Politics of Criminalisation, where experts unpack how legal frameworks interact with culture, community and rights in efforts to end FGM across the continent.

📚 Dive deeper with our blog on the politics, progress and challenges of criminalisation.

We hear from Satang Nabaneh, Angela J Dawson, Samuel Kimani and Laura Nyirinkindi, who reflect on the complex and evolving debates around FGM in Africa, particularly the role and limits of criminalization.

👉 Listen & read here: https://www.srhm.org/news/female-genital-mutilation-in-africa-politics-of-criminalization/

🤰 Biomedical advances mean women living with HIV can safely choose pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding without riski...
04/02/2026

🤰 Biomedical advances mean women living with HIV can safely choose pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding without risking vertical transmission. Yet evidence shows their reproductive rights are still undermined by coercive practices in healthcare settings because of HIV-related stigma.

🌎 This global scoping review synthesised 13 studies across regions including Mexico, the United States and South Africa, documenting severe and pervasive forms of reproductive coercion by healthcare providers.

👉These include forced or covert sterilisation, forced abortion, restricted or imposed contraception, and coercion around caesarean sections and fertility decision-making.

✊ Despite variations in definitions and methods, the findings point to a clear and urgent need to expand research, strengthen prevention mechanisms, and invest in survivor-centred resources beyond legal remedies.

🔗 Read the full paper to understand the evidence and why action is long overdue: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/26410397.2025.2588004

🌎Recent changes to U.S. foreign assistance policy mark a significant escalation in how anti-rights ideology is shaping g...
30/01/2026

🌎Recent changes to U.S. foreign assistance policy mark a significant escalation in how anti-rights ideology is shaping global health and development funding.

👉In a new episode of the S*xual and Reproductive Health Matters podcast, SRHM convenes leading experts and advocates to unpack the implications of three newly issued U.S. foreign assistance rules and what they mean for s*xual and reproductive health and rights ( ) worldwide.

🎙️SRHM Chief Executive, Eszter Kismodi, is joined by Elizabeth Sully, Director of International Research at the Guttmacher Institute; Amy Friedrich-Karnik, Director of Federal Policy at the Guttmacher Institute; and Mina Barling, Director of External Relations at the International Planned Parenthood Federation - IPPF.

✊Together, they bring complementary perspectives spanning policy analysis, evidence generation, and frontline service delivery and advocacy.

Read the blog and listen here:
https://www.srhm.org/news/the-global-gag-rule-expanded/

📣New research by Nished Rijal and Angel M. Foster examines pharmacy workers’ knowledge and practices around medication a...
27/01/2026

📣New research by Nished Rijal and Angel M. Foster examines pharmacy workers’ knowledge and practices around medication abortion in Nepal, where abortion pills may legally be dispensed by pharmacists with a prescription.

Drawing on surveys with nearly 500 pharmacy workers and in-depth interviews with 25 in Koshi prov🌏ince, the study finds strong awareness of the legal status and correct use of medication abortion. However, only around one in six pharmacies reported stocking abortion pills and dispensing them with a prescription. Barriers included lack of training, perceived legal and business risks, and supply chain challenges.

👉The findings highlight the potential of community-based pharmacies to expand access to safe, effective and accessible medication abortion care, if these barriers are addressed.

Read the full paper: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/26410397.2026.2617716

🎙️ New SRHM podcast episode!🌍 Eszter Kismodi is joined by Allan Maleche (KELIN), Mercy Kalemela and Audrey Bigeti (Girl...
26/01/2026

🎙️ New SRHM podcast episode!

🌍 Eszter Kismodi is joined by Allan Maleche (KELIN), Mercy Kalemela and Audrey Bigeti (Girls to Women Kenya) to unpack how extractivism and land extraction are impacting s*xual and reproductive health and rights in Kenya.

🌍 From gold mining in Kakamega County to mercury exposure, land dispossession and rising risks of gender-based violence, this conversation centres the lived realities of women and girls, and shows why extractivism is a global SRHR issue, not just an economic one.

🎧 Read more and listen now:
https://www.srhm.org/news/extractivism-gold-mining-and-s*xual-and-reproductive-health-and-rights-in-kenya-community-realities-and-wider-implications/

🌍 The number of people forced to leave their homes due to conflict and violence is higher than ever. In displacement, ev...
14/01/2026

🌍 The number of people forced to leave their homes due to conflict and violence is higher than ever. In displacement, everyday needs continue, including access to information and services about contraception, for those who wish to use it.

📄 This paper offers a framework for understanding contraceptive access in displacement, highlighting factors that enable or restrict access, such as cost, awareness of services, and perceived quality of care. Using the case of Syrians displaced to Türkiye following the escalation of the Syrian conflict in 2011, it examines different dimensions of access.

⚠️ Findings show that fear of side effects and other health concerns are key barriers to contraceptive use. Even among women using contraception, some were unable to access their preferred method, pointing to limits on contraceptive autonomy.

🔍 While focused on Syrians in Türkiye, the framework is applicable to other displacement settings. The paper also shows that gaps in available data remain a major barrier to understanding contraceptive access, and offers recommendations to strengthen the evidence base.

Read the full paper by Rosanna Le Voir here: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/26410397.2025.2607838

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RHM becomes SRHM

In February 2019, Reproductive Health Matters (RHM) changes its name to S*xual and Reproductive Health Matters (SRHM). S*xual health and rights have always been a part of the discourse of RHM, and we wish to fully represent the breadth and extensiveness of s*xual health and rights, and reproductive health and rights, in our name.

Our name represents our vision: a world in which s*xual and reproductive health and rights are recognized as fundamental human rights and matters of social justice; and in which the s*xual and reproductive health needs and rights of people are fully respected, protected and fulfilled, regardless of age, gender, gender expression, s*xual orientation, geographical residence, race, colour, language, social status or other social, political or personal attributes.