Campaign on Fertility Promotion

Addressing the urgent issue of declining fertility in Hong Kong through an advocacy campaign on fertility promotion to raise awareness and motivate the public.

This is an IPPF Innovation Fund project implemented by The Family Planning Association of Hong Kong (FPAHK) , an IPPF Member Association in the East and South East and Oceania Region.

“When it comes to work/life balance we all experience intense work pressure, lack of job security and long hours. These are not only deterrents to childbearing but also open us to mental and mood problems. For our sustainable development, we need family-friendly workplaces, not only for mothers but for fathers too.”  Dr Sue Lo, Family Planning Association of Hong Kong, and member of the Council for Sustainable Development’s Support Group on Population Policy.

Promotional railway poster used during the campaign.

Why is this work important?

Hong Kong has seen a drastic decline in its fertility rate which is amongst the lowest in the world. In an unprecedented step the Hong Kong government set up a Task Force in 2002 to study the challenges faced by the rapidly falling fertility rate. 

The project addressed the issue of declining fertility in Hong Kong through an advocacy campaign on fertility promotion which recognized the importance of fostering an environment that promotes parenthood.

FPAHK ran the Campaign on Fertility Promotion from December 2005 to December 2007.

FPAHK contributed to the national discussions by collecting public views and opinions on the barriers to fertility.

Reasons cited included issues such as:

• late marriage and low priority in planning for parenthood
• stressful lifestyles that affect sexual harmony amongst couples
• lack of awareness of sub-fertility treatment
• social taboos deterring help-seeking behaviour

What is innovative about this project?

FPAHK had not addressed the problems of infertility and non-consummation in marriage before. Fertility awareness and sexual harmony as part of good family planning were also areas new to the public.

While addressing changing societal needs, FPAHK widened the scope of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) to include issues of sexual disharmony, treatment of consummation difficulties and sub-fertility problems which had seldom been addressed before. 

Realising the importance of advocating and raising public awareness, FPAHK’s development of strategies used in the campaign demonstrates the willingness to evolve practices in order to tackle important issues. 

The publicity campaign was supportive of policy makers’ priorities to slow down or halt the falling fertility rate, while at the same time the services provided helped enhance relationships conducive to childbearing and widened the scope of comprehensive SRH services. 

More open discussion helped reduce entrenched societal taboos and encouraged people to seek advice and help for problems which had never been discussed in public, such as the non-consummation of marriage and sexual disharmony.
 
This 2 year initiative involved producing advertising materials and developing educational programmes.

The Campaign kicked off with an open forum, followed by mass media programmes on radio and television to arouse public concern of the challenges being faced by the local population. 

How is the strategy working?

The public forum was jointly organized with the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Hong Kong and the 200 strong participants included academics, researchers, government representatives and political parties. 

It was the catalyst to the launch of a community based e-forum on the government website to better capture participation and feedback to the government on this issue. 

Following on from the forum, fertility and related issues from FPAHK were given wider coverage by the major print media. 

FPAHK produced a five episode educational series on fertility and SRH issues which were broadcast on prime time Cable TV Hong Kong, the third largest TV channel in Hong Kong with a target age audience of 12-64 years old.

Advertisements on TV, radio and in poster campaigns were developed, carrying messages on SRH counselling and promotion of well planned parenthood; e-based initiatives such as a set of animated web messages and the development of e-cards for use and circulation by the public were launched. Lectures, workshops and articles were all conducted to raise awareness.

As a result of the campaign the government recognized the importance of promoting parenthood and agreed to offer financial incentives as well as supporting measures conducive to childbearing and rearing, without interfering with the decisions of individual couples.

FPAHK was able to capitalize on the public climate and government support and mobilize additional local resources to fund planned activities that were scaled-up to capture bigger audiences. 

What next?

FPAHK has been recognized as an effective partner by related government agencies and was represented in the government’s continuous review of sustainable development issues. 

SRH services have been up-graded and educational programmes such as workshops and lectures will run as regular programmes. 

Want to find out more?

Please contact:
The Innovation team at: innovation@ippf.org
The IPPF East and South East and Oceania Regional Office: ippfklro@ippfeseaor.org
The Family Planning Association of Hong Kong:  fpahk@famplan.org.hk

Archived material can be found on the FPAHK website: http://www.famplan.org.hk/