Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the World Health Organization about making Misoprostol available in conflict settings.

DFID has regular contact with the Inter-Agency Working Group on Reproductive Health in Crisis Situations (IAWG), of which WHO is a member.

The IAWG establishes technical standards for the delivery of reproductive health services in crisis contexts. Misoprostol is included in the drugs list for the IAWG’s Reproductive Health Kits for Crisis Situations, used to deliver the Minimal Initial Service Package for Reproductive Health in Crisis Situations (MISP), a series of crucial actions to respond to reproductive health needs at the onset of every humanitarian crisis. The UK advocates for full implementation of the MISP at the onset of emergencies.

DFID has supported the Reproductive Maternal Newborn and Child Health Trust Fund that focuses on increasing the availability of misoprostol, as one of 13 life-saving commodities, in all countries as a follow up to the UN Commission on Life Saving Commodities.