The Iraqi federal government is intensifying efforts to space births between two and three years by providing health services and contraceptives to reorganize families.

These efforts are part of the National Family Planning Strategy and birth spacing for the period from 2020 to 2025, which is in the final stages of implementation.

The project was announced in late 2020 under the supervision of the Iraqi Ministry of Health and in coordination with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) to serve as a roadmap for improving maternal and child health, reducing poverty, and achieving the sustainable development goals that Iraq has signed.

The United Nations has set 15 sustainable development goals, with the third and fifth focusing on the Iraqi Ministry of Health’s five-year strategy, which includes family planning and birth spacing as a human right. This commitment enables couples and individuals to freely and responsibly decide on the number and spacing of their children.

The Arabic version of the strategy published by the Ministry of Health emphasizes the commitment to improving maternal health and recognizing family planning and birth spacing.