Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters Podcast

Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters (SRHM)

The SRHM Podcast explores new research and emerging trends in the field of sexual and reproductive health and rights. Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters or SRHM promotes sexual and reproductive health and rights globally. At the heart of SRHM is a multidisciplinary, open-access, peer-reviewed journal. SRHM also creates and participates in spaces that motivate improvements in research, policy, services and practice. It contributes to capacity building in knowledge generation. Learn more at srhm.org. Music by Tiber Krisztián and Salamon Botond Sound editing by We Edit Podcasts

  1. NOV 7

    Sex, Satisfaction, and Switching: The Questions Contraceptive Research and Implementation Forgot to Ask

    On World Contraception Day, SRHM, in partnership with The Pleasure Project and WHO, hosted a powerful webinar launching a landmark systematic review: Sex, Satisfaction, and Switching: The Questions Contraceptive Research and Implementation Forgot to Ask. This review provides the first systematic evidence on the extent to which sex life concerns influence contraceptive discontinuation and switching. Key findings highlight that 1 in 20 contraceptive users discontinue while still in need due to the impact on their sex life. This rivals other commonly cited reasons such as cost and access, yet is rarely considered in counselling, research or policy. The review also shows just how little sexual acceptability has been studied in relation to contraceptive use – underscoring the urgent need to bring pleasure, intimacy and lived experience into sexual and reproductive health (SRH) research and practice. Speakers included: Welcome by Sapna Desai | Editor-in-Chief, Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters (SRHM)Introductory poem by Theresa Mae Caragan | Youth Advisor, Plan International PilipinasDr Lianne Gonsalves | Scientist, Human Reproduction Special Programme (HRP), World Health Organization (WHO)Dr Faysal El Kak | President, World Association of Sexual Health and Director of the Women Integrated Sexual Health (WISH) Program Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, American University of Beirut Medical CenterDr Samukeliso Dube | Executive Director, FP2030Moderated by Anne Philpott | Founder, The Pleasure Project The contributions from the research team, global advocates and practitioners, as well as youth voices and poetry reminded us that pleasure is not a luxury, but a right tied to dignity, safety and self-worth. Speakers called for urgent action to: Make pleasure a priority in the global SRHR agenda.Ask users directly about how methods affect their sex lives.Normalise positive framing of contraception as enabling safe and pleasurable sex. This research represents a crucial step toward humanising contraceptive delivery, challenging over-medicalised narratives, and designing SRHR services that reflect people’s realities. Read the full paper, 'The sex effect: the prevalence of sex life reasons for contraceptive discontinuation. A systematic review and meta-analysis' at srhmjournal.org.

    57 min

  2. OCT 31

    A Landmark Win for Reproductive Rights: Kenya’s High Court Ruling on the National Reproductive Health Policy

    In this episode of the SRHM Podcast, SRHM Chief Executive Eszter Kismodi speaks with Allan Maleche, Executive Director of KELIN Kenya, and Jerop Limo, Executive Director of the Ambassadors for Youth and Adolescent Reproductive Health Programme (AYARHEP). Together, they discuss a groundbreaking case before the High Court of Kenya, which challenged the country’s National Reproductive Health Policy (2022–2032) for being discriminatory and unconstitutional.  The conversation explores how this ruling — a partial but significant victory — advances reproductive rights, upholds the Maputo Protocol and Kenya’s Constitution, and reinforces the power of youth and civil society in shaping rights-based policy. Allan and Jerop reflect on the implications for access to SRHR services, bodily autonomy, and inclusion, and share what’s next for advocacy, policy reform, and accountability in Kenya.

    25 min

  3. OCT 24

    The right to science in sexual and reproductive health and the legal status of the human embryo

    How should science shape laws and policies on reproductive health? What happens when ideology overrides evidence in decisions about IVF, abortion and reproductive autonomy? And why is the right to science a critical yet overlooked human right? In this thought-provoking episode of the SRHM Podcast, host Eszter Kismődi speaks with four authors of a groundbreaking SRHM paper: The right to science in sexual and reproductive health and the legal status of the human embryo. Guests Professor Silke Dyer, Professor Alison Edelman, Professor Joanna Erdman and Professor Asha George explore how scientific progress, human rights and law intersect in debates on the status of the human embryo—and the consequences for people seeking fertility and abortion care around the world. Together they discuss: Why personhood laws rooted in ideology threaten reproductive rights and public health How misinformation shapes policy and restricts evidence-based care The right to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress as a human right The importance of cross-disciplinary collaboration for sexual and reproductive justice This episode is essential listening for anyone working in global health, human rights, law, public policy, advocacy or SRHR research. 👉 Read the full article, open-access, at srhmjournal.org👉 Join the conversation ahead of Human Rights Day on the future of the right to science in SRHR.

    44 min

  4. OCT 20

    Surrogacy and bodily autonomy as a matter of sexual and reproductive justice

    On 8 October 2025, Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters (SRHM) co-hosted a global webinar titled “Surrogacy as a Matter of Sexual and Reproductive Justice” in partnership with the Just Futures Collaborative, Center for Reproductive Rights, Initiative for Strategic Litigation in Africa (ISLA), and the Leitner Center for International Law and Justice. This event situated surrogacy within the wider framework of sexual and reproductive justice, human rights, and bodily autonomy. The webinar explored human-rights approaches to surrogacy, the effects of criminalization and prohibition, and evidence-informed regulatory and feminist perspectives. The discussion showed how surrogacy can be grounded in autonomy, dignity, equality, and protection from exploitation. Guided by an intersectional lens, the webinar examined how gender, sexuality, race, class, religion, migration, economic inequality, and labour rights shape surrogacy. Participants also considered evidence on how restrictive frameworks undermine rights and discuss strategies for coalition-building and advocacy across movements. Speakers Sarojini Nadimpally | Co-founder of Sama Resource Group for Women and Health Eng Chandy | Executive Director of Gender and Development for Cambodia (GADC) Verónica Esparza | Research Coordinator, Grupo de Información en Reproducción Elegida (GIRE) Nerima Were | Legal Director at The Initiative for Strategic Litigation in Africa (ISLA) Subha Wijesiriwardena | Co-director of Just Futures Collaborative Moderator: Eszter Kismodi | Chief Executive of Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters

    1h 25m

  5. SEP 19

    Female genital mutilation in Africa: Politics of criminalisation

    On 9 September 2025, SRHM hosted a thought-provoking webinar to launch the open-access book Female Genital Mutilation in Africa: Politics of Criminalisation, edited by Satang Nabaneh, Assistant Professor of Practice at the University of Dayton Human Rights Center, and affiliated faculty at the Center for Human Rights, University of Pretoria. Introduced by Eszter Kismödi, Chief Executive of SRHM, the event brought together contributing authors to reflect on the complex and evolving debates around FGM in Africa, particularly the role and limits of criminalization.Speakers: Satang Nabaneh (Moderator) - Beyond legislation: Examining the efficacy of criminalisation of female genital mutilation in Africa Angela J Dawson - Research and female genital mutilation prevention: Evidence from Africa Samuel Kimani - Medicalisation of female genital mutilation/cutting: Ethical dimensions Laura Nyirinkindi - A case commentary on law and advocacy for women in Uganda v the Attorney General: Exploring the legal steps taken in abolishing the practice of female genital mutilation and challenges with implementing the decision

    56 min

  6. AUG 22

    Global progress in abortion law reform since ICPD

    In this episode of the SRHM Podcast, host Eszter Kismödi speaks with Katie Mayall, Laurenne Ajayi, and Caitlin Gruer—authors of the article Global progress in abortion law reform: a comparative legal analysis since the International Conference on Population and Development. Together, they unpack three decades of global shifts in abortion law, drawing on unique legal mapping by the Center for Reproductive Rights. The conversation explores key findings, including the surge of countries adopting abortion on request in recent years, the influence of feminist and intersectional movements, and the role of courts and constitutions in shaping access. The guests also discuss regional patterns, from the momentum of Latin America’s “green wave” to restrictive backlashes in places like the US, Poland and Nicaragua. As they highlight, while more than 825 million women of reproductive age now live in countries that have liberalised their laws since ICPD, one in four still live under highly restrictive regimes. The episode closes with a reflection on both the progress to celebrate and the urgent need for vigilance, coalition-building, and a vision of true reproductive autonomy where abortion is not only legal, but fully accessible as a human right. Useful links: Read the full paper: Global progress in abortion law reform: a comparative legal analysis since the International Conference on Population and Development (1994–2023) at srhmjournal.org. See our call for papers on 'Ensuring access to abortion as a matter of rights, equity and justice' at srhm.org/call-for-papers

    13 min

  7. AUG 15

    Dr Faysal El Kak: Vision as the New President of the World Association for Sexual Health

    In this episode, SRHM Chief Executive Eszter Kismödi speaks with Dr Faysal El Kak, Associate Professor at the American University of Beirut and newly elected President of the World Association for Sexual Health (WAS). Against a backdrop of global political and economic turbulence, Dr El Kak reflects on the pressing challenges and emerging opportunities for sexual health worldwide—from rising anti-rights movements and economic pressures to bold youth activism and growing intersectional approaches. He shares his vision of WAS as a powerful convening force, uniting organisations, agencies, and advocates to protect and promote sexual health, dignity, and rights across the life course. The conversation also previews the upcoming World Sexual Health Assembly in Porto, set to bring together major international players to shape a collective roadmap for the next five years.

    14 min

  8. AUG 1

    Telehealth abortion services in Kenya via Women on Web

    In this episode of the SRHM Podcast, we explore how people in Kenya are accessing safe abortion care online in the face of restrictive laws and limited health system support. Host Julia Hussein is joined by researchers Kenneth Juma (APHRC), Hazal Atay (Women on Web/Sciences Po), and Céline Miani (Bielefeld University) to discuss their study analysing nearly 900 telehealth abortion consultations via Women on Web between 2013 and 2019. The conversation dives into who is using these services, why they turn to teleabortion, and how this mode of care fits within broader frameworks of self-care and reproductive rights. Recorded during #SelfCareMonth, this episode highlights the power of self-managed abortion as both a health intervention and a means of reproductive autonomy. Useful links: Read the full paper, 'Telehealth abortion services via Women on Web in Kenya (2013–2019): a descriptive analysis of the characteristics and motivations of the care seekers' at srhmjournal.orgCall for papers on ensuring access to abortion as a matter of rights, equity and justice' at srhm.org. More papers on SRHR and self-care on the SRHM Blog

    26 min
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About

The SRHM Podcast explores new research and emerging trends in the field of sexual and reproductive health and rights. Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters or SRHM promotes sexual and reproductive health and rights globally. At the heart of SRHM is a multidisciplinary, open-access, peer-reviewed journal. SRHM also creates and participates in spaces that motivate improvements in research, policy, services and practice. It contributes to capacity building in knowledge generation. Learn more at srhm.org. Music by Tiber Krisztián and Salamon Botond Sound editing by We Edit Podcasts

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