Abstract
Introduction: Tanzania is among of the African countries with high maternal and child mortality rates and fast growing population. It also has high fertility rate and a huge unmet need for family planning. Contraceptive use reported to avert more than 1 million maternal deaths in Sub-Saharan Africa due to decline in fertility rate and thus help to achieve MDG 4 and 5. Therefore, this study aimed to determine factors influencing modern contraceptive use among women aged 15 - 49 years in Tanzania. Methods: This was a secondary analysis of Tanzania Demographic Health Survey (TDHS), 2010. A total of 475 clusters (urban and rural) composed of 9663 households were selected. During the survey, a total of 10,139 women aged 15 - 49 years were interviewed about sexual and reproductive matters using a standardized questionnaire. We restricted our analysis to married/cohabiting women (n = 6412) responded for in individual records and domestic violence (n = 4471). Univariate and multiple logistic regression analyses were performed using Stata version 11.0. Odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals for determinants of modern contraceptive use were estimated. A P value of 5% (2 tails) was considered statistically significant. Results: Women empowerment (OR = 1.4; 95% CI: 1.13 - 1.63), male-female age difference of less or equal to nine (OR = 1.6; 95 CI: 1.01 - 2.66), and advice given at health care facilities on family planning (OR = 1.6; 95 CI: 1.37 - 1.96) were predictors of modern contraceptive use. Woman sexual violence was not associated with modern contraceptive use. Conclusions: The predictors of modern contraceptive use in our study correspond with previous studies in low and middle income countries. Women empowerment, male-female age difference, and child desire were important predictors for modern contraceptive use. This highlights the need to promote contraceptive use among women of reproductive age.
Highlights
Tanzania is among of the African countries with high maternal and child mortality rates and fast growing population
This study investigated two major gaps that were not addressed in the 2010 Tanzania Demographic Health Survey (TDHS) report, 1) What are the factors that promote use of modern contraceptive use among women of reproductive age in Tanzania? 2) What are the barriers for use of modern contraception in this group? we aimed to investigate the factors influencing modern contraceptive use among women of reproductive age in Tanzania
Prevalence of modern contraceptive use is still low. This highlights the need to promote contraceptive use, in turn contribute toward the reduction of neonatal and maternal mortality rate
Summary
Tanzania is among of the African countries with high maternal and child mortality rates and fast growing population. A recent commentary on Family Planning in the Lancet, accurately summarised the impact of meeting the contraceptive needs as “According to Singh and colleagues [2], meeting the contraceptive needs of 215 million women with a unmet need for modern contraception would reduce unintended pregnancies by more than two thirds, avert 70% of maternal deaths, 44% of newborn deaths, and 73% of unsafe abortions, and reduce by 76% the number of women needing medical care for complications related to unsafe abortion In addition to these health benefits, the resulting reduction in fertility and population growth would bring substantial socioeconomic and environmental benefits” [3]. FP enables couples or family/women to plan when to have children and use birth control to delay (spacing) or number of children
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