A new study suggests that around 17.5 percent of the adult population or 1 in 6 people worldwide, experience infertility.

The World Health Organization WHO finding indicates the urgent need to increase access to affordable, high-quality fertility care for those in need.

Infertility is a disease of the male or female reproductive system, defined by the failure to achieve a pregnancy after 12 months or more of regular unprotected sexual intercourse.

The UN health agency states that large numbers of people are affected by infertility in their lifetime with a comparable lifetime prevalence of 17.8% in high-income countries and 16.5% in low- and middle-income countries.

Dr. Pascal Allote is the  Director of the Sexual and reproductive health department at WHO.