Couples unmet need for family planning: an analytical study of couples in Kenya

Francis Ssebiryo Exavious, Center for Nutrition Education and Technology (CeNET), Uganda
Immaculate Ndetei Mwanza, Kenya Ministry of Internal Affairs

Background: Usually studies on unmet need for family planning (FP) have been women-based paying no attention to men’s contribution yet couple consensus has profound reproductive decisions. This study examines unmet need for FP in a couple-based approach adopting behavioral theories and uses logit models to analyze Kenya Demographic Health survey-2009 data to establish determinants of couple unmet needs. Results indicate that unmet need is 1.5 times higher among men to that of women and couple unmet need is 13% and decreases with age; while women socioeconomic status significantly predicts couple unmet need. Unmet need is 2 times high for couples with husband dominance in decision-making while, men’s positive attitude on FP has 2.5 times lower odds of couple unmet. Conclusion: These results suggests that targeting couples as a unit can facilitate them make mutual and informed decisions on reproductive health for positive maternal and the child health.