KIGALI, RWANDA – Many countries will enjoy accelerated economic growth if more investment is geared towards family planning, the President and CEO, Women Deliver, Katya Iversen, has said.

Speaking to the press at the International Conference on Family Planning (ICFP) in Kigali, Iversan says when the world invests in women and girls, it creates a positive ripple effect economically, societally, as well as in health and gender equality.

Citing a report from McKinsey Global Institute, Iversen says if there is gender equality in the workplace, of which family planning is a component, there could be a 28 percent or $28 trillion increase in global GDP.

“That’s not pocket money,” she says. “That is the combined economy of the US and China.”

Iversen says “Family planning is a proven strategy that saves lives, prevents maternal death, and ensure more children survive their first year of life. The benefits don’t stop there. It is the bedrock of gender equality and evidence shows that when women and girls can live their full potential, the impact is exponential for all.”

“We have learnt over the years that the right place to look is absolutely essential. (One of the things) we need to do is to convince the ministry of finance (across countries) that investing in family planning is essential. Women’s rights are more than their reproductive health right.”

This year’s family planning conference focuses on the economic returns that family planning provides. It calls for further investments so that women and girls, communities, and nations will get a lifetime of returns.