CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
Background to the study
The importance of family planning practices among women in Nigeria especially Ekiti West local government area cannot be over emphasized. Family planning is a process of controlling the number of children among couples. It is a lifesaver for millions of women and children in both developing countries including Nigerian and it is one of the most cost-effective health interventions.
The alarming rate at which the population of the world is increasing demands adequate and immediate attention. This is needed to curb problem of social, ecological, economic and general welfare problems of all individuals. As a matter of fact, the survival of the human race is endangered if population growth is not checked adequately. Family planning is the practice that helps individuals or couples to attain the objectives to avoid unwanted pregnancy, to bring about wanted birth, to regulate the interval between one pregnancy and another to determine the number of children in the family (Olugbenga-BelloAbodurin&Adomi, 2011).
Family planning, according to Smith, Ashford, Gribble and Clifton (2009) increases survival, improves the health of millions of people and helps achieve national goals.
Family planning helps women to avoid unwanted pregnancies, illegal abortions and child bearing that will threaten their own personal health and that of the children. Family planning involves two concepts - contraceptive use and family planning services which is used by couples to bring about healthy sexual relationships among them without fears of unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections (Osakinle, 2003). Ringheim and Gribble (2009) and Lordson (2012) further shed light on the role of the two concepts. The later opines that family planning can be said to be child spacing. He also believes it is a practice whereby prescribed orthodox medicines are used to prevent pregnancy while the previous child grows and the mother's body system recover sufficiently.
Ringheim and Gribble (2009) also noted that contraception helps individual to choose when to have children, prevents unintended pregnancies, averts maternal and child deaths and prevents abortions.Family planning could prevent as many as one in every three maternal deaths by allowing women to delay motherhood, space birth, avoid unintended pregnancies and abortion and stopchildbearing when they reached their destined family size (Carb & Mary 2016). Evidence suggests that more than half of all couples in the developing countries are using family planning to delay, space or limit future pregnancies, yet the need for keeps increasing as the number of women of reproductive age continues of grow. An estimated 137million women worldwide have unmet need for Family Planning (FP). that is, they are not using any method and report that they want to avoid pregnancy (Rhoda, Lori,Jay & Donna 2009).
Recent researches have indicated that family planning increases survival, improves the health of millions of people and helps achieve national goals. In "Return of the Population Growth Factor" (2009), it is believed that family planning can contribute to nearly all the goals outlined in the United Nation's Millenium Development Goals (MDGs) including reducing poverty and hunger, promoting gender equity and empowering women, reducing child mortality, improving maternal health, combating HIV/AIDS, and ensuring environmental sustainability. World Health Organisation (WHO) (2007) also noted that family planning can help women wait at least two years before trying to become pregnant again, thereby reducing newborn, infant and child deaths significantly. In the same vein,Collumbien, Gerressu and Cleland (2004) are of the opinion that family planning could help prevent as many as one in every three maternal deaths by allowing women to delay motherhood, space births, avoid unintended pregnancies and abortions and stop childbearing when they have reached their desired family size.
Traditionally, Nigerians have recognised the need for spacing births. For example, abstinence while breastfeeding has been widely practiced in Nigeria in the olden days and according to Wolf &Abubukar (2016 ), it is still practiced in Nigeria across the northern Nigeria as a method of child spacing. Xnaocha (2002) observed that traditional ways used to prevent pregnancy in theolden days include prolonged lactation, post-natal and sexual abstinence and polygamy, that is, husband pressure for intercourse is reduced because of too many wives. Other methods include charms/armlets and herbs. With the increased population and diseases as stated by Lordson (2012), the traditional ways have become obsolete and modern family planning methods for child spacing have been adopted.With the economic state of the Nation, couples begin to face unwanted pregnancies. Of the 210 million pregnancies occurring each year, according to WHO (2007), nearly 80 million are unintended. Unintended pregnancy is a primary reason for aborton. Each year, approximately 42 million women decide they cannot continue their pregnancies and seek abortions. An estimated 20 million of those abortions are performed either by persons lacking the necessary skills or in an environment lacking the minimal medical standards, or both - resulting in nearly 67,000 deaths annually.
Nigeria which has population of 140 million and an annual growth rate of 3.2% is the most population explosion with the resultant effect that food production cannot match the growing population. In Nigeria today, the birth rates are higher than the world average (Nwachukwu & Obasi, 2016) contraceptive prevalence rates is still embarrassing how in Nigeria, according to the report released by the international women's health coalition, the CPR among married women aged 15-49 years was 8% for modern methods and 12% for all methods. Also other studies have reported a similarly low adoption rate of Modern Birth Control Methods (MBCM), United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA. 2007).
Like many other developing nations majority of Nigeria's population (about 70%) live in the rural communities. These rural communities have very high fertility rate and the Contraceptive Prevalence Rate (CPR) is also considerably lower in rural areas with contraceptive prevalence rate of 8% as cpmpared with 18% in the urban areas in Nigeria. Many rural women are reportedly relunctant to accept any artificial method of contraception. (Geur, &Goel, 2016 ) several studies also revealed that rural women who were unwilling to accept family planning methods were unwilling to accept family planning methods were concerned about child survival and viewed children as a source of support in old age.
Adopting Modern Birth Control Method (MBM) is a very complex sociological issue in Africa, and African women draw on a complex social repertoire in making contraceptive choices. Decision-making concerning fertility control is, for many people, a deeply personal and sensitive issue, often involving religious or philosophical convictions. Studies carried out in Nigeria have shown that lack of adequate information and ignorance are key factors militating against family planning practice in Nigeria (Moronkola, Ojediran&Amosun, 2016) the socio-economic characteristics of women, notably educational differences in reproductive behaviour and contraceptive choice (Olugbenga, Abodurin&Adomi, 2011). Birth control is a priority in Nigeria and many programmes to increase contraceptive practice have been implemented. However, the problem of high fertility and low contraceptive practice remain unresolved. The total fertility rate of the country for the year 2000 was found to be 5.9children per women and the contraceptive prevalence was only 8%. This is too low to affect the fertility levels significantly, and the fertility rate of the country actually increased to 6.1 children per women for the year (2003).High population growth prevents the long-term socio-economic development needed to alleviate poverty and to meet the immediate basic needs of the burgeoning population. Accurate and specific data about the reason behind the low contraceptive practice in the country should be available in order to develop an effective and relevant family planning strategy.
Statement of the problem
Owing to uncontrollable positive increase of joblessness or unemployment, unsatiable demand for improved social services and educational opportunities, population explosion becomes a serious concern, this ismoreso when the population growth rate is greater than the growth rate of economy. Nevertheless, all hand should be on deck to examine the number of issues that influence population explosion, specifically attention be tailoring family size that is equated to the available resources.
One of the primary objectives of family planning among women in Ekiti West Local government area of Ekiti State is to enhance good health. The researcher observed that in Ekiti West Local Government Area, there are many women who are involved in termination of unwanted and unplanned pregnancies and related issues, which affect their health. The researcher is of the opinion that these could be linked with the kind of attitude women put up towards family planning practices in Ekiti West Local Government Area.
In view of these, the study intends to look into family planning practice among women in Ekiti West Local Government Area of Ekiti State .
Purpose of the study
The main purpose of this study is to Effective of family planning among women in Ekiti West local government. in Ekiti West Local Government Area of Ekiti State. Specifically, the study intends to:
1. Determine the attitude of women of towards family planning in Ekiti West Local Government Area of Ekiti State .
2. Find out the level of awareness of women towards family planning
3. Determine if educational status of women influence their knowledge towards family planning in Ekiti West Local Government Area
4. To find out the challenges encounter by literate parents towards family planning in Ekiti West Local Government Area of Ekiti State
5. If economic status have influence on the attitude of women of child bearing age towards family.
Significance of the study
The findings of this study, if published in a journal and made available to all women in Nigeria will enable them improve their knowledge, understanding and attitude towards family planning practice which will help to reduce the level of unwanted pregnancies, abortions, dumping of babies here and there among the women in Ekiti State .
Infact this study is imperative when one thinks of the downwards plunge of the nation's economy. Hardly can families meet all their needs because of the bad state of their economy. In an attempt to salvage the situation the limited resources of the family are spent on many children, family planning will help to checkmate such situation.
The study results will also help policy makers and programme planners determine what issues need to be stressed in the design of future. Family planning awareness campaign in Nigeria and used as reference materials by population planners for studying fertility related problems as a reference materials for further study in family planning.
Educational programme will find such knowledge about women in family planning issues very useful in their campaigns for effective fertility regulation which before now is mainly based on women.The study will also contribute to knowledge and form a basis through which other studies can proceed.
Scope of the Study
The study was delimited to family planning practice . The study is delimited to Ekiti West Local Government area. The survey design of the descriptive type of research was used for the study.
Research questions
In an attempt to carry out the study, answers will be provided to the following questions:
1. What are the attitude of women towards family planning in Ekiti West Local Government Area of Ekiti State ?
2. What are the levels of awareness among women towards family planning practice?
3. Does educational status of women in Ekiti West Local Government Area influence their knowledge towards family planning practice?
4. What are the challenges encounters by women towards family planning?
5. Does economic status have influence on the attitude of women of child bearing age towards family planning?
Research hypotheses
The following hypothesis were tested for the purpose of this study:
1. There will be no significance difference in the attitude of women towards family planning.
2. There will be significance difference in the level of awareness among women towards family planning practice.
3. Educational status of women would not influence their knowledge towards family planning.
4. There will be significance difference in the challenges encounter by women towards, family planning.
5. Economic status will not significantly have influence in the attitude of women towards family planning.
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