France under pressure to stop $9.7m of USAID contraceptives being destroyed
Source: The Guardian
France under pressure to stop $9.7m of USAID contraceptives being destroyed
US reportedly planning to destroy contraceptives, probably destined for Africa, in France after dismantling USAID
Angelique Chrisafis in Paris and Lisa O’Carroll in Brussels
Thu 31 Jul 2025 14.15 BST
Last modified on Thu 31 Jul 2025 18.27 BST
The French government has said it is closely monitoring a US plan to destroy millions of dollars of contraceptives stocked in Europe after outrage from French feminists, rights groups and family planning organisations at what they called a wasteful attack on women’s rights.
The Guardian reported this month that Donald Trump’s administration planned to destroy $9.7m of contraceptives that are believed to be in a warehouse in Belgium but may be moved to France for incineration. They are mostly long-acting contraceptives such as IUDs and birth control implants, which had been bought under public health programmes run by the US Agency for International Development and were probably intended for women in Africa.
A US state department spokesperson told Agence France-Presse this week that “a preliminary decision was made to destroy” certain birth control products from “terminated Biden-era USAID contracts”.
-snip-
The contraceptives, stored in a warehouse in Geel in Belgium, were reportedly planned to be incinerated in France, although there has been no confirmation of this by France. France and Belgium are under pressure to prevent any destruction.
-snip-
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jul/31/france-under-pressure-to-stop-97m-of-usaid-contraceptives-being-destroyed
= new reply since forum marked as read
Kick in to the DU tip jar?
This week we're running a special pop-up mini fund drive. From Monday through Friday we're going ad-free for all registered members, and we're asking you to kick in to the DU tip jar to support the site and keep us financially healthy.
As a bonus, making a contribution will allow you to leave kudos for another DU member, and at the end of the week we'll recognize the DUers who you think make this community great.