Family planning has improved since 2014 – report

Adaptation of family planning methods in the country have been improving over the 2014 – 2022 period.

This is according to the 2023  State of Kenya Population Report which was released on Friday. 

The report said women in the country aged between 15 and 49 have been embracing contraceptives more. 

"Family planning, which plays a vital role in reducing unplanned pregnancies, registered an improvement in utilisation among married women aged 15-49," the report reads in part. 

In 2014, the report noted that 58 per cent of married women were using a method of family planning compared to 63 per cent in 2022, as shown in Figure 1.2.

In the same period, married women’s unmet need for family planning reduced from 18 to 14 per cent.

Further, the report noted that there are counties with higher unmet needs for contraceptives. 

The county with the highest unmet needs for family planning is Marsabit with 38 per cent of the women lacking access to contraceptives. 

Tana River County has the second-highest number of women with unmet needs for family planning at 34 per cent. 

West Pokot comes third highest at 30 per cent, then Siaya and Isiolo at  27 per cent.

"The target is to reduce the unmet need to zero, implying that all women who desire to delay or not have any more children can do so using an effective family planning method.," the report read. 

Additionally, the report showed that fertility rates among women are higher for those in rural areas compared to those in urban areas. 

"The fertility is higher among women in rural areas at 3.9 than those in urban areas at 2.8 children per woman," read the report. 

The report also showed there was progress in reducing teenage pregnancies among women aged 15-19 from 18 to 15 per cent over the 2014 – 2022 period. 

"The percentage of women aged 15–19 who have ever been pregnant was highest in Samburu (50%)and West Pokot (36%) and lowest in Nyeri and Nyandarua (5% each)," the report said.