Giving Compass' Take:

• In conjunction with the recent International Conference on Family Planning in Rwanda, three major donors, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, have announced commitments to family planning initiatives in Africa.

• Although family planning programs are supported by large donors like the Gates, there are opportunities for others to make an impact on this issue.

• Learn more about the importance of family planning in Africa. 

At the International Conference, the United Kingdom's Department for International Development announced an investment of £200 million ($260 million) in support of Women's Integrated Sexual Health (WISH), a new program aimed at ensuring that couples in some of the world's poorest countries have access to life-saving voluntary contraception. In addition, the Canadian government announced that it will invest up to C$104.4 million ($78.8 million) in projects that take a comprehensive approach to sexual and reproductive rights and health, including universal access to family planning and access to safe and legal abortion. And the Gates Foundation announced the launch of a family planning fund that includes $15 million for a community matching fund and $3 million for technical assistance efforts. To be managed by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the project will support family planning efforts in Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, and Togo.

Read the full article on supporting families in Africa at Philanthropy News Digest.