Women in Kenya are showing a preference for the Depo-Provera hormonal contraceptive, an injection that contains the progestin hormone and is administered every three months.

According to the Economic Survey 2022, 595,703 women are using the depo-vera contraceptive.

Implants are the second most preferred form of contraceptive in Kenya after the injectable Deoro-vera with 576,000 recorded users in 2021, followed by oral pills.

Kenyan women have been embracing contraceptive usage over the years, which has seen the country record a prevalence rate of 61 per cent. In 2015, contraceptive usage surpassed the 2020 national target of 56 per cent, after recording a 58% modern contraceptive use by married women.

The Director of Medical Service Nicholas Muraguri attributed the growth to education and expanded access to family planning and reproductive health services.

“The results indicated that the level of education has a role to play when it comes to contraceptive use; those who are highly educated are getting fewer children compared to those with less education”, said Dr Muraguri.

The government has been keen on putting efforts to expand equitable access to quality and affordable healthcare at the county level, and this has see the number of counties that have family planning budget allocations increase.

The allocation for family planning in the national health budget. however remains small and advocates have been pushing for the threshold to be increased, in order to reduce donor dependency.

Sexual and reproductive health rights key to empowering women

Planned Parenthood is quite essential not just for families but for development.

A woman with minimal childbearing responsibilities is also better placed to hustle and get productively immersed in the job market without having to subject her young children to premature “hustling” to supplement the family income.

In a country that is largely patriarchal but also where single parenting is increasing by the day, women empowerment is quite crucial.

An economically empowered woman is better placed to make and contribute informed household decisions and invest in her children’s welfare and education. She is also able to make her own reproductive health decisions.