An international network of pro-family groups is calling on the UN Population Fund to place development before its promotion of abortion and contraception under the agency's "reproductive health services".
The criticism from the World Congress of Families International (WCF) comes in response to the UNFPA's recently released annual report which stated that "reproductive rights" and contraception are the primary focus of the organisation's work.
The report warns that "every minute, 190 women are forced to confront the possibility of an unplanned or unwanted pregnancy – one that could have been easily prevented if only they had access to contraceptives".
"UNFPA acts as if this was one of the great tragedies to befall humanity – that a woman is expecting a child whose conception wasn't planned," commented Allan Carlson, secretary of the pro-family network.
UNFPA spends $148 million annually on reproductive health programmes, compared to only $51 million on development programmes.
The World Congress of Families, founded by Carlson in 1997, is calling on the UNFPA "to re-think its dogmatic support for so-called family planning and focus instead of helping nations plan for the needs of their people – born and unborn," it said on Friday.
While expressing concern that the agency treats people as a "plague – a hindrance to economic development and social stability," Carlson pointed out that the most densely populated nations – including some in Southeast Asia – are among the most prosperous.
