Contraceptives use above 56pc target

A majority of women have now embraced the use of contraceptives, surpassing the country’s projections, the Department of Medical Services has said.

The department revealed that contraceptive prevalence rate increased from 46 per cent to 58 per cent, surpassing the national target of 56 per cent by 2015.

Speaking at Maasai Mara University in Narok County during the World Population Day celebrations, Director Medical Services Nicholas Muraguri attributed the increase to 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.

In a speech read on his behalf by Agutu Silas, Muraguri also cited other discrepancies in contraception use such as rural and urban areas where those in rural areas have high fertility rates as compared to their urban counterparts.

Muraguri however noted that despite improvements in other health indicators over the past decades, the country still suffers from high maternal and infant morbidity and mortality rates.

To address the same, he said the Government has committed Sh3.8 billion to implement the free maternity policy in all public health facilities across the country.

“On the same line, it was noted that out of 15 women who die every day due to pregnancy-related complications in Kenya, 20 per cent is due to HIV/Aids-related complications,” he added.

For economic growth to be realised, he said fertility rates should fall and the proportion of working-age adults must rise, occurring naturally as a result of lower mortality and fertility rates.