The President’s budget request for fiscal year 2016 released yesterday is a mixed bag for international family planning and reproductive health program funding. While the request for the main bilateral account that supports FP/RH activities is identical to last year’s number—and the proposed contribution to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) is only marginally lower—the total request is just slightly higher than what Congress appropriated in December. This is a disappointing proposal.

The total bilateral and multilateral request for international FP/RH for FY 2016 is $612.6 million, including $538 million in the Global Health Programs account, $39.6 million in Economic Support Funds, and $35 million for a U.S. contribution to UNFPA from the International Organizations & Programs account.

The President’s FY 2016 request is $31.7 million less than what he proposed last year—almost entirely the result of a dramatic, but explainable, drop in the amount of Economic Support Funds (ESF) allocated for FP/RH activities in a small number of strategically and politically important countries. The large reduction is apparently being justified by the existence of a large amount of unexpended funds in the “pipeline” for FP/RH activities in Pakistan.

For more details on the President’s budget request, read the full Washington Memo.

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