Use of Birth Control Products and Economic Welfare of Women: A Case Study of Amasaman Area Council, Accra, Ghana

Abstract

Use of birth control products and contraceptives could improve the economic welfare of women, arising from adequate spacing of child births and reduced financial pressure and lower stress on women having fewer and well maintained children. In order to interrogate this assertion, a quantitative survey-based study was conducted that involved a diverse and heterogeneous population of 400 randomly selected women in all 39 settlements of the Amasaman Area Council in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. The first objective of this study was to analyze the factors which influenced the current use of birth control products and contraceptives. The second objective ascertained whether women who had ever used birth control products and contraceptives, at least once in their reproductive lifespans, had higher economic welfare than those who had never used these products at all. The results of the analysis showed that the likelihood of using birth control products and contraceptives declined with increasing income of the women. Students were less likely to use birth control products and contraceptives than non-students. However, the degree of awareness of these products was influential in increasing the likelihood of use of these products by students and higher-income women. Other variables which influenced the likelihood of use of birth control products and contraceptives included the perceived quality of reproductive health information and the quality of health services provided by nurses and doctors at clinics. It was established that women who had ever used birth control products and contraceptives, over their reproductive lifespans, had significantly higher incomes than those who had never used these products.