Young Women Access and Use of Contraception: The Role of Providers’ Restrictions in Urban Senegal

Estelle Monique Sidze, African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC)

Gaps are observed in young women’s use of family planning and greater depth is needed to understand barriers to their use, including barriers imposed by service delivery providers. Data from the Urban Reproductive Health Initiative in urban Senegal were used to examine the levels of contraceptive use, the method mix, the levels of unmet needs and the sources of contraceptive methods of 15-29-year-old urban women who are currently married or are unmarried but sexually active. The prevalence of eligibility restrictions based on age and marital status among family planning providers is also examined; as well as how these restrictions might affect young women’s access to contraceptive methods. The minimum ages required by providers to offer contraceptive methods in facilities show that young people are forgotten in service provision. Restrictions based on marital status are less prevalent than restrictions based on age.