Married Women’s Decision-Making Power in Family Planning Use and its Determinants in Basoliben, Northwest Ethiopia

Abstract

Berhanu Alemayehu,1 Getachew Mullu Kassa,1 Yohannes Teka,1 Liknaw Bewket Zeleke,1 Amanuel Alemu Abajobir,2 Addisu Alehegn Alemu1 1College of Health Sciences, Debre Markos University, Debre Mark’os, Ethiopia; 2Maternal and Child Wellbeing Unit, African Population and Health Research Center, Nairobi, KenyaCorrespondence: Addisu Alehegn AlemuCollege of Health Sciences, Debre Markos University, Debre Markos, EthiopiaEmail [email protected]: Women’s decision-making power influences the use of family planning. It is one of the denied fundamental rights of women, particularly in developing countries. Objective: This study was aimed to assess married women’s decision-making power in the use of family planning and its associated factors among married reproductive age women in Basoliben, Amhara, Ethiopia, 2018.Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among married reproductive age women from March 1 to 30, 2018. A multistage simple random sampling technique was employed in selecting study participants. Data were collected using structured questionnaires and analyzed through SPSS 20 software. The binary and multiple variable logistic regression models were fitted to identify factors associated with women’s decision-making power on family planning use. Statistical significance was declared at p-value less than 0.05.Results: A total of 734 married women aged 18– 49 years are making a 98% response rate included in this study. The level of married women’s decision-making power in family planning among married women was 80%; 95% CI (76.9, 82.8). Monthly income (AOR=2.2; 95% CI: 1.1, 4.2), husband’s desired number of children of < 3 (AOR=9.9; 95% CI: 3.6), husband’s desired time for additional child after 3 years postbirth (AOR=4.0; 95% CI: 1.9, 8.5) and women’s information on any contraceptive (AOR=9.6; 95% CI: 2.4, 39.0) were factors significantly associated with married women’s decision-making power in family planning.Conclusion: Married women’s decision-making power in family planning use was optimal. Household monthly income, husband’s desired ideal number of children, husband’s desired time when to have another child and information about any contraceptive methods were predictors of their decision-making power on family planning use. There should be awareness creation of family planning methods to increase its utilization.Keywords: decision-making, married women, family planning, Amhara, Ethiopia

Keywords

• decision-making
• married women
• family planning
• amhara
• ethiopia