MSI Myanmar

Myanmar is dealing with some of the most challenging health indicators in the Pacific Asia region, with only one in three women estimated to be using a modern method of contraception. 

MSI Myanmar is working with the Government of Myanmar to increase access to sexual and reproductive healthcare, and improve sex education – particularly for those living in poverty and hard-to-reach areas.

Only one in three women use any modern method of contraception

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What we do in Myanmar

Since 1997, MSI Myanmar has been taking a dual approach to improving sexual and reproductive health in the country. 

Firstly, by directly providing services to thousands of people through centres and extensive outreach. And secondly, by working with the Government of Myanmar, and other partners, to help strengthen local health systems.

We feel privileged to be one of the few providers trusted to provide family planning services in Myanmar.

How we deliver services in Myanmar

We operate a large network of over 17 centres in Myanmar, providing people with a range of high-quality family planning services. Due to large areas of the country being rural and remote, not everyone can make it to these centres, which is why outreach is one of the core foundations of our work in Myanmar.

We have over 12 outreach teams who travel to remote regions, bringing free contraception and sexual health services to communities that would otherwise have no access.

Outreach is not without its challenges – the country’s many diverse languages and vulnerability to natural disasters can exacerbate the teams’ efforts – but it continues to be one of our most effective means of reaching people in Myanmar.

Training midwives: the backbone of the public health system

We work to strengthen and support the local health system in Myanmar, ensuring family planning services in the country remain sustainable for the long term. 

Central to this is our collaboration with the Myanmar Ministry of Health and the Nurse and Midwife Association. We help provide training to newly qualified midwives and then, in consultation with the government, deploy them to communities with the greatest need – usually rural areas lacking a midwife.

Midwives form the backbone of the public health system in Myanmar, as they visit women in communities who can’t make it to centres and teach them about contraception and birth spacing. Without these visits many women in rural areas simply wouldn’t know about contraception.

Just one midwife in one village can have a tremendous impact, as sexual health education is picked up at counselling sessions and shared across communities. Because of this programme, many women in Myanmar are now able to make life-changing choices for themselves.

Our impact in Myanmar

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