About two thirds of all couples around the world - or some 650 million people - use some form of contraception, according to new statistics released by the United Nations. Worldwide, 62 per cent of the more than 1 billion married or 'in-union' women of reproductive age are using contraception, but there are great variations among regions. In Africa, only 25 per cent of married women use contraception, while in Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean that figure is between 66 and 69 per cent. These statistics are featured on a new wall chart entitled "World Contraceptive Use 2001," issued by the UN Population Division as part of its ongoing monitoring of world use of family planning.