Gender issues in contraceptive use among educated women in Edo state, Nigeria.

BACKGROUND While traditional contraception is widely used, in southern Nigerian modern contraception is a relatively recent phenomenon. Modern contraception is more wide spread among the educated and sexually active youth in Nigeria. Few studies have been done on contraception among educated women in Nigeria. OBJECTIVES This study was carried out in December 2000 to determine factors that influence the choice of contraceptives among female undergraduates at the University of Benin and Edo State University Ekpoma. METHODS Data was collected from a sample of 800 female undergraduates matched ethnic group, socio economic status, religion and rural urban residence. Subjects were selected by proportional representation and the instrument used was closed ended questionnaire. RESULTS The responses obtained were analysed using Spearman Rank Correlation co-efficient and regression analysis. Findings revealed the highest correlation for availability (r =.96) vis a vis the use of various types of artificial contraceptive and cost (r =.96), next was safety (r =.95) and effectiveness (r =.95). Others were peer group influence (r =.80) and convenience (r =.77). CONCLUSION An important step in improving women's reproductive health is the involvement of men. Health programmes should conduct campaigns to educate men about reproductive health and the role they can assume in family planning.