Abstract:
Background: Average contraceptive prevalence rate in the Nkwanta district of Ghana was estimated to be 6.2%
relative to the national average at the time, of 19%. While several efforts had been made to improve family
planning in the country, the district still had very low use of modern family planning methods. This study sought to
determine the factors that influenced modern family planning use in general and specifically, the factors that
determined the consistently low use of modern family planning methods in the district.
Methods: A case–control study was conducted in the Nkwanta district of Ghana to determine socio-economic,
socio-cultural and service delivery factors influencing family planning usage. One hundred and thirty cases and 260
controls made up of women aged 15–49 years were interviewed using structured questionnaires. A logistic regression
was fitted.
Results: Awareness and knowledge of modern family planning methods were high among cases and controls
(over 90%). Lack of formal education among women, socio-cultural beliefs and spousal communication were
found to influence modern family planning use. Furthermore, favourable opening hours of the facilities and
distance to health facilities influenced the use of modern contraceptives.
Conclusion: While modern family planning seemed to be common knowledge among these women, actual
use of such contraceptives was limited. There is need to improve use of modern family planning methods in
the district. In addition to providing health facilities and consolidating close-to-client service initiatives in the
district, policies directed towards improving modern family planning method use need to consider the
influence of formal education. Promoting basic education, especially among females, will be a crucial step as
the district is faced with high levels of school dropout and illiteracy rates.
