Socio-demographic factors associated with contraceptive use among young women in comparison with older women in Uganda

John A. Mushomi, Makerere University
Patricia Ndugga, Makerere University
John Bosco Asiimwe, Makerere University

Brief Summary: In Uganda, as in most countries, the level of modern contraceptive use is much lower among younger married women compared with older women. Our study found that the key determinants for current use of modern contraceptives among young (15-24 years) married women were residence and desire for children, while among the older women (25-34 years) the determining factors were; a woman’s level of education, household wealth and desire for children consistently as key factors over the time period of 2006 and 2011. Research: In Uganda, a country with divergent trends in modern family planning use among younger and older married women, we hypothesize that factors associated with contraceptive use operate in a fundamentally different way among married women in the two age groups: 15- 24 and 25-34. We tested this hypothesis using data from the Uganda Demographic and Health Survey (UDHS) in 2006 and 2011. We restricted the sample to fecund, non-pregnant married women age 15-34 who were sexually active within one year prior to the survey, resulting in a sample of 2,802 women in 2006 and 2,814 women in 2011. We used multivariate logistic regression to model the relationship between selected independent variables and the outcome variable (current use of modern contraception). Results: The findings suggest that improving the livelihood of the population is important. Family planning programs should be intensified to meet the needs of young and married women. Programmes intended to improve contraceptive use among married women should put into consideration age factor since most Ugandan women get initiated into sexual activities at an earlier age and consequently enter marriage.