Unraveling the factors behind the growth of the Indonesian family planning private sector.

Increasingly donors and developing country health practitioners are calling for an expanded private sector role in the delivery of high-quality family planning and reproductive health services but policy guidance on how to encourage greater private sector participation is scarce. As of the mid-1980s however Indonesia has been expanding the private sectors share of the nations family planning service provision. In 1987 only 15 percent of women obtained contraception from the private sector; by 1997 the share had risen to 42 percent marking a nearly three-fold increase. This case study documents Indonesias family planning experience with a view to understanding the factors and conditions that led to the remarkable growth in the private sectors role in delivering family planning services. Indonesias National Family Planning Coordinating Board (BKKBN) was instrumental in planning for the private sectors growth. It successfully generated nationwide demand for family planning responded to changing consumer preferences over time supported a new cadre of private sector service providers and introduced an affordable line of contraceptive products. While Indonesias private family planning sector expanded in response to several converging factors the governments commitment to promoting the private sector as a source of family planning services was clearly prominent among all factors. (authors)