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Abstract BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: In 2004, the Kenyan media featured a set of reports alleging that an epidemic of emergency contraception (EC) abuse had emerged among adolescents in Nairobi. Fueling an already heated debate on reproductive rights in Kenya, both a newspaper article and a television news story suggested that easy access to EC encouraged risky sexual behaviors among adolescents. The features implied that although educated youth have adequate knowledge of the modes of HIV transmission, access to EC has encouraged frequent and risky sexual encounters. According to the newspaper, young women in Nairobi were so regularly and repeatedly engaging in such risky behavior that they were “using [EC pills] like chocolate.” Despite the compelling nature of these reports, little empirical evidence exists—either in Kenya or abroad—linking EC access and risky sexual behaviors among adolescents. To test popular assumptions, while at the same time contributing to a growing understanding of adolescent sexuality, the Population Council undertook a rapid diagnostic assessment of EC use among adolescents in Nairobi. METHODOLOGY: This rapid assessment was conducted over a two-month period in 2005 using a quantitative survey instrument administered to 300 participants. To ensure that findings are directly relevant to the current public debate on EC, efforts were made to collect information from the same type of respondents cited in the media reports: namely young women in Nairobi between the ages of 14 and 25. The survey measured prior contraceptive knowledge, use, and participation in risky sexual behaviors, such as having sex for money and having sex without a condom. Repeat use of EC was also assessed, and participants were asked to rank their own susceptibility to both pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections, including HIV. EXPECTED FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS: Data analysis, currently underway, focuses on understanding the characteristics of three types of adolescents: those who have knowledge of EC but have not used it; those who have used it once; and those who have used it more than once. Within each of these categories, the relationships between contraceptive knowledge of all types, knowledge and access to EC, risk perception, and risky behaviors are being explored. Key findings on the sexual behaviors and prevalence of EC use in all three populations will be presented. This information will help assess the validity of media claims regarding an epidemic of EC abuse in Nairobi and consequent risky sexual behaviors. It will contribute to the emerging literature on the relationships between easy access to EC, adolescent sexuality, and HIV transmission. It is also intended to serve as formative research for a future qualitative study that further investigates the linkages between access to EC and risk perception. This page updated |
