Predictors of intention to use contraceptives among married and cohabiting women in Ghana: A cross-sectional study

Augustus Osborne; Richard Gyan Aboagye; Camilla Bangura; Bright Opoku Ahinkorah

doi:10.1186/s40834-024-00312-9

Predictors of intention to use contraceptives among married and cohabiting women in Ghana: A cross-sectional study

Contracept Reprod Med. 2024 Nov 11;9(1):55. doi: 10.1186/s40834-024-00312-9.

Authors

Augustus Osborne¹, Richard Gyan Aboagye^{2

3}, Camilla Bangura¹, Bright Opoku Ahinkorah^{4

5}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Biological Sciences, School of Basic Sciences, Njala University, Freetown, Sierra Leone.
² School of Population Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia. aboagyegyan94@gmail.com.
³ Department of Family and Community Health, Fred N. Binka School of Public Health, University of Health, and Allied Sciences, Hohoe, Ghana. aboagyegyan94@gmail.com.
⁴ REMS Consultancy Services Limited, Sekondi-Takoradi, Western Region, Ghana.
⁵ Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia.

Abstract

Background: Contraceptive use is a cost-effective intervention for reducing unintended pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections and their negative consequences. It is vital to increase contraceptive use among women to improve their reproductive health outcomes. This study examines the factors associated with contraceptive use intention among married and cohabiting women in Ghana.

Methods: We analysed data from the 2022 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey. A total of 5,846 married and cohabiting women were included in the study. A multivariable binary logistic regression analysis was used to examine the factors associated with the intention to use contraceptives. The regression results were presented using an adjusted odds ratio (aOR) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs).

Results: The proportion of intention to use contraceptives among married and cohabiting women was 33.0% [31.1, 35.0]. Compared to women living in the Greater Accra, those living in Central (aOR = 1.69; 95% CI = 1.06, 2.69), Bono East (aOR = 1.63; 95% CI = 1.02, 2.61), Oti (aOR = 2.68; 95% CI = 1.63, 4.40), and Upper West Regions (aOR = 4.48; 95% CI = 2.68, 7.48) were more likely to have contraceptive use intention. The odds of intention to use contraceptives increased with increasing parity, with the highest odds among women with four or more births (aOR = 2.41; 95% CI: 1.66, 3.51). The intention to use contraceptives decreased with increasing age, with the lowest odds among those aged 45-49 (aOR = 0.04, 95% CI = 0.25, 0.07). Women with no education (aOR = 0.42, 95% CI = 0.28, 0.63), primary education (aOR = 0.56, 95% CI = 0.37, 0.86), and secondary education (aOR = 0.65, 95% CI = 0.45, 0.92) had lower odds of intention to use contraceptives compared to those with higher education. Married women (aOR = 0.61, 95% CI = 0.49, 0.76) had lower odds of contraceptive use intention relative to cohabiting women.

Conclusion: Our study revealed a low contraceptive use intention among women, signalling a barrier in access to family planning services in the country. Various factors, including age, region, marital status, parity, and educational level play a role in determining the intention to use contraceptives. These findings underscore the importance of implementing policy changes and enhancing existing programmes to improve the availability of information, contraceptive education, and family planning services, especially for younger women, those living in rural areas, and those with lower levels of education. Additionally, it is vital to address socio-cultural barriers and empower women to address the factors associated with intention to use contraceptives.

Keywords: Contraceptives; Demographic and Health Survey; Ghana; Intention; Predictors; Women.