A social franchise is a network of private-sector health care providers that are linked through agreements to provide socially beneficial health services under a common brand.  

This type of network can be particularly important for expanding availability and improving the quality of family planning services in the private sector, particularly for provider-dependent methods such as intramuscular injectable contraceptives, contraceptive implants, and intrauterine devices (IUDs).

This brief describes the potential impact of social franchising on key family planning outcomes. It also provides useful guidance on how social franchising can be used to increase access to high-quality family planning products and services.