According to a recent World Health Organization (WHO) report, around 17.5% of the global adult population – roughly one in six people – experience infertility.
This highlights the urgent need to provide affordable and high-quality fertility care to those who need it, as infertility affects many people worldwide.
The report shows that the prevalence of infertility is relatively consistent across regions and income levels. This suggests that infertility is a significant global health challenge. In high-income countries, the lifetime prevalence of infertility was 17.8%, while it was 16.5% in low- and middle-income countries.
Infertility is a disease of the reproductive system that affects both men and women and is defined as the failure to conceive a pregnancy after 12 months or more of regular unprotected sexual intercourse. It can cause significant distress, stigma, and financial hardship, negatively impacting people’s mental and psychosocial well-being.
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Despite the enormity of this issue, solutions for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of infertility, including assisted reproductive technology like in vitro fertilization, are underfunded and often inaccessible to many due to high costs, social stigma, and limited availability.
“At present, in most countries, fertility treatments are largely funded out of pocket – often resulting in devastating financial costs. People in the poorest countries spend a greater proportion of their income on fertility care compared to people in wealthier countries. High costs frequently prevent people from accessing infertility treatments or can catapult them into poverty due to seeking care,” the WHO said in a press statement.
The WHO Director General, Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus, commented that the report reveals a crucial truth: infertility does not discriminate.
