The use of social media among adolescents in Dar es Salaam and Mtwara, Tanzania
Abstract: Social media form part of the rapid worldwide digital development that is re-shaping the life of many young people. While the use of social media by youths is increasingly researched in the North, studies about youth in the South are missing. It therefore remains unclear how social media can be included in interventions that aim at informing young people in many countries of the global South about sexual and reproductive health. This paper presents findings of a mixed-methods study of young people’s user behaviour on the internet and specifically of social media as a platform for sexual health promotion in Tanz...
Source: Reproductive Health Matters - June 1, 2014 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Constanze Pfeiffer, Matthis Kleeb, Alice Mbelwa, Collins Ahorlu Source Type: research
Female genital cutting in Hargeisa, Somaliland: is there a move towards less severe forms?
Abstract: According to several sources, little progress is being made in eliminating the cutting of female genitalia. This paper, based on qualitative interviews and observations, explores perceptions of female genital cutting and elimination of the phenomenon in Hargeisa, Somaliland. Two main groups of participants were interviewed: (1) 22 representatives of organisations whose work directly relates to female genital cutting; and (2) 16 individuals representing different groups of society. It was found that there is an increasing use of medical staff and equipment when a girl undergoes the procedure of female genital cutt...
Source: Reproductive Health Matters - June 1, 2014 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Ingvild Bergom Lunde, Mette Sagbakken Source Type: research
Induced abortion patterns and determinants among married women in China: 1979 to 2010
This study assesses trends in and determinants of induced abortion among married women aged 20–49 in China from 1979 to 2010, using data from national statistics and nationally representative sample surveys. The incidence of induced abortions among married women aged 20–49 began to decrease in the mid-1990s. The induced abortion rate reached its highest level in the early 1980s (56.07%) and its lowest level in the 2000s (18.04%), with an average annual rate of 28.95% among married women 20–49 years old. The likelihood of a pregnant woman undergoing an induced abortion during this period depended not only on individua...
Source: Reproductive Health Matters - June 1, 2014 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Cuntong Wang Source Type: research
Women’s perceptions about abortion in their communities: perspectives from western Kenya
Abstract: Unsafe abortion in Kenya is a leading cause of maternal morbidity and mortality. In October 2012, we sought to understand the methods married women aged 24–49 and young, unmarried women aged ≤ 20 used to induce abortion, the providers they utilized and the social, economic and cultural norms that influenced women’s access to safe abortion services in Bungoma and Trans Nzoia counties in western Kenya. We conducted five focus groups with young women and five with married women in rural and urban communities in each county. We trained local facilitators to conduct the focus groups in Swahili or English. All fo...
Source: Reproductive Health Matters - June 1, 2014 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Heather M Marlow, Sylvia Wamugi, Erick Yegon, Tamara Fetters, Leah Wanaswa, Sinikiwe Msipa-Ndebele Source Type: research
Conscientious objection, barriers, and abortion in the case of rape: a study among physicians in Brazil
Abstract: In Brazil, to have a legal abortion in the case of rape, the woman’s statement that rape has occurred is considered sufficient to guarantee the right to abortion. The aim of this study was to understand the practice and opinions about providing abortion in the case of rape among obstetricians-gynecologists (OBGYNs) in Brazil. A mixed-method study was conducted from April to July 2012 with 1,690 OBGYNs who responded to a structured, electronic, self-completed questionnaire. In the quantitative phase, 81.6% of the physicians required police reports or judicial authorization to guarantee the care requested. In-dep...
Source: Reproductive Health Matters - June 1, 2014 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Debora Diniz, Alberto Madeiro, Cristião Rosas Source Type: research
“Female Condoms Are_____”: Bringing local voices to decision-makers through a film contest
Female condoms are an important option for dual protection, yet awareness and availability remain too low in too many places, including areas with high rates of HIV infection and unmet need for modern contraception. Negative attitudes, perceived lack of demand, and tepid political will amongst international donors and policymakers are factors that continue to hamper widespread availability. A variety of advocacy approaches are needed to help create an enabling environment to make female condoms a real choice for women and men. (Source: Reproductive Health Matters)
Source: Reproductive Health Matters - June 1, 2014 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Kimberly J Whipkey, Laura East, Patricia S Coffey Source Type: research
Beyond bonus or bomb: upholding the sexual and reproductive health of young people
Abstract: Described as a blessing or a curse, a bonus or a bomb, the youthful population boom in the global South is thought to be the catalyst of present and future social change on a massive scale. These binary understandings of youth are popular among proponents of development programs aimed at young people, including for family planning. But dualistic, numbers-based theories oversimplify a much more complex picture. They narrow our perceptions of young populations and, when lacking more detailed understanding based in youth experience, have the potential to constrict sexual and reproductive health and rights. Instead, ...
Source: Reproductive Health Matters - June 1, 2014 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Anne Hendrixson Source Type: research
Losing an only child: the one-child policy and elderly care in China
This article draws upon several qualitative studies and 12 cases reported by the Chinese media in 2012 and 2013, and existing laws and policies for supporting those who have lost only children. It also analyses the current elderly care situation facing these families. The Chinese government has recognized the predicament and provides some help, which is increasing but is still not always adequate. To both sustain China’s economic development and limit population growth, it is essential for the government to reform the one-child policy and provide a comprehensive support system for the families who have lost their only ch...
Source: Reproductive Health Matters - June 1, 2014 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Yu Song Source Type: research
Having fewer children makes it possible to educate them all: an ethnographic study of fertility decline in north-western Tigray, Ethiopia
This article is about the role of education and other factors in fertility decline in the context of current Ethiopian policies on population and sustainable development, based on an ethnographic study of women’s agency and girls’ pursuit of education in one semi-urban and one rural area in north-western Tigray, in northern Ethiopia. Long-term environmental insecurity and scarcity of arable land for the younger generation in this area serve as important background. Another central issue in the study was the religious conditioning of women’s choices, which stood out most clearly in the case of contraceptive use. The r...
Source: Reproductive Health Matters - June 1, 2014 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Thera Mjaaland Source Type: research
Providing family planning services to remote communities in areas of high biodiversity through a Population-Health-Environment programme in Madagascar
Abstract: Population-Health-Environment (PHE) is an interdisciplinary model of programme design which recognises the complex interconnections between people, their health and their environment. PHE responds holistically to the challenges faced by ecosystems and the communities dependent on them, with thematically distinct but interconnected work strands sharing the same infrastructure, resources and goals. This has been shown to achieve better outcomes than tackling health and environmental issues in isolation. This paper shows how PHE programme design has been used by Blue Ventures for providing family planning services i...
Source: Reproductive Health Matters - June 1, 2014 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Vik Mohan, Tess Shellard Source Type: research
Beginning with sustainable scale up in mind: initial results from a population, health and environment project in East Africa
Abstract: Small-scale pilot projects have demonstrated that integrated population, health and environment approaches can address the needs and rights of vulnerable communities. However, these and other types of health and development projects have rarely gone on to influence larger policy and programme development. ExpandNet, a network of health professionals working on scaling up, argues this is because projects are often not designed with future sustainability and scaling up in mind. Developing and implementing sustainable interventions that can be applied on a larger scale requires a different mindset and new approaches...
Source: Reproductive Health Matters - June 1, 2014 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Laura Ghiron, Lucy Shillingi, Charles Kabiswa, Godfrey Ogonda, Antony Omimo, Alexis Ntabona, Ruth Simmons, Peter Fajans Source Type: research
Resilience, integrated development and family planning: building long-term solutions
This article first examines the meaning of resilience as a component of responding to disasters and some of the key components of building resilience. It then summarises approaches to resilience developed by the Rockefeller and Packard Foundations, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, USAID and DFID, which show how family planning services can contribute to resilience. Next, it gives some examples of how family planning has been integrated into some current environment and development programmes. Finally, it describes how these integrated programmes have succeeded in helping communities to diversify livelihoods, ...
Source: Reproductive Health Matters - June 1, 2014 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Roger-Mark De Souza Source Type: research
Sexual and reproductive health and rights in the evolving post-2015 agenda: perspectives from key players from multilateral and related agencies in 2013
Abstract: This paper reports the views of participants from key multilaterals and related agencies in the evolving global negotiations on the post-2015 development agenda on the strategic location of sexual and reproductive health and rights. The research was carried out in June and July 2013, following the release of the report of the High-Level Panel of Eminent Persons on the Post-2015 Development Agenda, and comprised 40 semi-structured interviews with 57 participants and two e-mail respondents. All respondents were responsible for the post-2015 health and development agenda, or the post-2015 agenda more broadly, within...
Source: Reproductive Health Matters - June 1, 2014 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Claire E Brolan, Peter S Hill Source Type: research
Population, sexual and reproductive health, rights and sustainable development: forging a common agenda
This article suggests that sexual and reproductive health and rights activists seeking to influence the post-2015 international development paradigm must work with sustainable development advocates concerned with a range of issues, including climate change, environmental issues, and food and water security, and that a way of building bridges with these communities is to demonstrate how sexual and reproductive health and rights are relevant for these issues. An understanding of population dynamics, including urbanization and migration, as well as population growth, can help to clarify these links. This article therefore sug...
Source: Reproductive Health Matters - June 1, 2014 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Karen Newman, Sarah Fisher, Susannah Mayhew, Judith Stephenson Source Type: research
A three-pronged approach to advocacy for sustainable national funding
This article provides background regarding the challenges in monitoring developing country contributions; summarizes current donor initiatives to strengthen civil society advocacy; and reviews theoretical approaches to assessing advocacy. The author identifies major advocacy limitations and proposes a three-pronged approach to harmonize international and national advocacy messages for improved, sustained increases in health funding and outcomes, namely, that local accountability is paramount, that national health programmes must be designed as legally binding entitlements, and that pro-health values and norms must be stren...
Source: Reproductive Health Matters - June 1, 2014 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Karen Hoehn Source Type: research
