15% of Lankan couples sub fertile

There is a 15 per cent prevalence of sub fertility among Sri Lankan couples, a Cabinet Memorandum by the Ministry of Health has revealed.

“For both men and women sub fertility is considered a major life issue associated with psychological suffering. Inability to conceive is usually coupled with intimate partner violence, low confidence, depression, sexual problems, feeling of shame and guilt and isolation from friends and family,” the memo read.

The Ministry of Health has also stressed the need to focus on providing sub fertility services to be on par with sustainable development goals to be achieved by 2030.

“Provision of sub fertility care, including psychological counselling, proper guidance and early referral are lagging behind in our primary healthcare system due to the lack of attention for sub fertility management. Advanced sub fertility management technologies such as in vitro fertilization are yet to be established in government healthcare services,” the memo added.