PREVALENCE AND ASSOCIATED FACTORS OF CONTRACEPTIVE USE, INTENTION TO USE AND METHOD OF USE AMONG MARRIED WOMEN IN ETHIOPIA

Background: Family planning has improved the well-being of families and communities by preventing high-risk pregnancies, abortion and by reducing unplanned pregnancies. However, the effectiveness of family planning efforts has not been consistent across countries. In some developing countries including Ethiopia, the prevalence of contraceptive use has remained low or even increased over the years.
Objectives: To examine factors associated with contraceptive use, intention to use contraceptives and method of contraceptive use among married women in Ethiopia.
Methods: Data were collected from 2011 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey. The sample comprised of 10,204 married women (aged 15–49 years) was included in the analysis. Percentage, Chi-square test and binary logistic regression analysis were performed to fulfill the study objectives.
Results: Among married women in Ethiopia, 29.2% used contraceptives methods. Among contraceptive users, 94.6% used modern contraceptive methods and 5.4% used traditional contraceptive methods. Approximately 44% of women who were not current users of contraceptives reported that they intended to use them in the future. Age at first marriage, being educated, number of living children, exposure to mass media, being employed, having educated partners, and having been informed about contraceptive use at health facilities are positively associated with contraceptive use. By contrast, age, a rural residence, Muslim religion, belonging to the Afar or Somali ethnic groups, desiring numerous children, having husband who desired additional children, and abortion experience were negatively associated with contraceptive use. Women who had higher education were less likely to use modern contraceptive methods (OR=0.25) than traditional contraceptive methods compared to women who had no education. Similarly, women whose husbands had secondary or high education were less likely to use modern contraceptive methods (OR = 0.21) than traditional contraceptive methods compared to women whose husbands had no education
Conclusions: Findings indicate that delaying the age of marriage in girls, improving education and providing employment opportunities for women, disseminating information about family planning through different mass media, and providing training to family planning providers are essential to increasing contraceptive use.