Family planning communications and contraceptive use in Kenya

Abstract

This study aims at examining how family planning communications are related to socio-demographic factors and how these two affect family planning adoption in Kenya which in tum affects fertility. It focuses on four specific objectives which includes; examining the reach of family planning messages through the mass media and interpersonal channels; identifying sub-groups within the population that have had relatively less exposure to family planning messages; establishing the level of exposure to family planning messages through the mass media and interpersonal channels in relation to selected socio­ demographic characteristics of the population and establishing the relationship between family planning adoption in the country and fertility levels in terms of the total number of children ever born.

The data used in the study is of secondary nature from the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey, 1993. The methodology of data analysis used was cross tabulations, descriptive statistics and the Chi-square. The innovation decision process model adopted from Rogers 1983 was applied. In application of this model, family planning was looked at as a process that occurs over a period of time and consists of a series of actions. The process begins at the awareness stage through to interest, evaluation trial and finally to adoption. Graphs were used to present information in the study simply and quickly.

The findings of the study revealed that age, marital status, region, education and residence of the respondents are influencing factors on the source of family planning information. Interpersonal channel-s were found to be the most powerful source of family planning information to women in Kenya. Health workers were distinctly the source .of most information. Mass media exposure was higher in urban as opposed to rural areas and vice versa for interpersonal channels. Women's expo-sure to family planning messages was found to

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mcrease with a woman's level of education while exposure through interpersonal channels decreased with increase in educational attainment.

Family planning sources were found to be closely associated with socio­ demographic factors of the population and the two influence the adoption of family planning and therefore contraceptive use in the country. The adoption of family planning was found to be closely associated with the number of children ever born which is a direct measure of fertility.

The study recommends that policy makers should address the population on matters pertaining to family planning at different levels since their needs are different where certain sub-groups (socio-demographic) are more advantaged than others. Once the individual needs are addressed at the respective levels, then fertility would become manageable for the entire nation. It also recommends that; interpersonal channels should be enhanced being the most powerful source of family planning information; a market research should be carried out on times most women listen to radio and television and use such times to broadcast family planning; and further research with multi-variate analysis should be addressed.