NEWS FEATURE: Kilifi Women Adopt Contraceptives
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The use of contraceptives among sexually active women in Kilifi County for the prevention of unwanted pregnancies and unsafe abortions is increasing day by day.
A joint survey from performance monitoring for Action (PMA) and the Kilifi county referral hospital shows contraceptive use among sexually active women of childbearing age increased from 23 percent in 2014 to 45 percent in 2022.
Earlier on, the majority of women from the Mijikenda community never used contraceptives; their husbands and extended families frowned upon the use of modern family planning methods due to traditional beliefs.
The survey however warns of the dangers of abusing the p2 pill by young girls.
”Two in 5 girls swallow P2 every week. We have also seen that more teenagers aged 15 up to 19 are active in sex,” said Dr Kenneth Miriti, Kilifi County Focal Person for Reproductive Sex Maternal Child and Adolescent Health.
Dr Miriti said family planning can help save the lives of women and children by reducing unplanned pregnancies and promoting healthy child spacing.
“Evidence has shown that the high maternal death rate is mostly due to high unintended pregnancies and low use of family planning services. Increased uptake of family planning can avert up to 33 per cent of maternal deaths and 23 per cent of perinatal deaths,” he said.
A cross-section of women interviewed by Billy O’clock news on family planning methods, showed that most women engaged in either modern or traditional ways to prevent unwanted pregnancies.
Elvina Kalu, a trader in Ganze, said she used to count her safe days and abstain from sex or use local herbs. Ms Kalu said she started taking contraceptive pills about six months ago as an alternative method.
“I still count my safe period and I am on a family planning pill that I take every day. Why I decided to start taking pills because my menstrual dates started fluctuating after my last child who is now two years old and this is making it difficult to count my date as it has become unreliable. It was my friend that advised me that it is better to get an alternative method in order not to get pregnant and to be able to satisfy my husband because I can’t be giving him excuses every time,” she said.
The survey also showed that there is an increase in the use of modern health contraceptive methods as compared to the traditional method of preventing unwanted pregnancies.
Six out of ten women used modern methods like pills and injections than those who used traditional methods such as withdrawal, herbs and menstrual date count.
Mary Kenga, a teacher in the outskirts of Kilifi town, said she and her husband had always relied on the traditional method of withdrawal, menstrual date counting and local herbs to prevent pregnancy because of the negative opinion of people on the use of modern contraceptive methods.
“I started using modern contraceptives after I ‘accidentally’ conceived my last child eight months ago. I now have five children. It was during the antenatal that the nurses clarified some of the negative thoughts I had. Currently, I am on the three-month injection method. It’s not that the traditional method is not good, but you may miscalculate and become pregnant when you least expect,” Ms Kenga said
Some rural women use castor seeds as a birth control method.
”I take two castor seeds per week after delivery till the baby is five months. This blocks the sperm from fertilizing the eggs,” said Chenda Kea, a resident of Magarini.
Chenda, who is a mother of five, says this is the only method of birth control her husband prescribes with the help of her mother-in-law.
The research also shows that most men and women practice sex before marriage. This has necessitated the county government and other organizations to encourage the use of contraceptives among all sexually active age groups.
”About 30 percent of teenage girls between the ages of 15 and 19 are either pregnant with their first child or are already mothers, while half of the women between the ages of 25 to 49 years married between 18 to 20 years; thus the need for birth control pills or contraceptive technique to reduce unintended pregnancies and encourage childbirth spacing’‘ reads part of the report.
However, some women complained that contraceptive use does not necessarily prevent pregnancy.
Recounting her experience, Agnes Kea, said she got pregnant with her fourth child during the period she was on family planning. She said there is a five-year gap between her third and last child.
“I didn’t plan on having a fourth child. In fact, my husband was content with our three sons. I was not on any modern form of contraceptive for four years because I was not sure which one to use or was safe for me because of all the stories of accidental pregnancy and hormonal imbalance, adding weight and loss of sexual appetite after the use of some contraceptives.
“I decided to choose an implant method after speaking with my gynaecologist about which would be best for me. It was while I was on this that I got pregnant and I can’t give a reasonable explanation for that. My opinion is, it may work for some and may not work for others, but that does not mean people should not know when to stop having children,” Ms Kea said.
Michael Withaka, a PMA researcher said contraceptive failure happens when the contraceptive is not used properly. ”Very rarely will an unwanted pregnancy come from contraceptive failure; it comes from improper use by the user,” he said.
“There are different methods of using contraceptives: the use of hormone medications, intrauterine contraceptive devices (IUCD), barrier contraception, periods of abstaining from sex, and sterilization. And let me also say clearly that there is one that is good for you. The truth of the matter is that we need to examine you to make sure that your blood pressure is normal,” Withaka said.
Tsuma Nzai, a director and custodian of Mijikenda traditions at Magarini cultural center urged couples to give birth to only the number of children they have the financial capacity to take care of.
“Though modern family planning methods like coils are shunned in our community because they do not align with our beliefs, I advise that you space children so that you will be able to properly take care of them,” he said.
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