Ghada Ibrahim and Marwan Khawaga. "Women's autonomy and fertility in urban poor communities in Sudan."

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study is to test the relationship between fertility decline and its relationship to the status of women in deprived urban areas in Khartoum, Sudan. Women's utilization of contraception will be examined as an important determinant of fertility and the extent to which women's autonomy affects their decisions to use contraception. A sample of 1,952 currently married women of reproductive age is used in the analysis. Women's autonomy is measured using four indexes: women's involvement in domestic decisionmaking, women's attitudes toward domestic violence, women's perceptions regarding their freedom in deciding whether to work and gain regular income, and the extent of women's contributions to household income. Results show that using family planning methods among currently married women is significantly dependent on their autonomy status. Moreover, some policy implications of the findings regarding fertility decline, increase of utilization of family planning contraception, and women’s autonomy are discussed.

Session P-1: Poster Session 1
Tuesday, 11 December 2007, 12:45–2:15 pm

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