Assessment of Sexual and Reproductive Health Access among Young Married Women in Nigeria Using a National Representative Sample.

Olaposi Adeyemi, College of Medicine, University of Ibadan. Ibadan, Nigeria
Ayo Adebowale, University of Ibadan
Martin E. Palamuleni, North-West University, Mafikeng Campus
Abdulafeez Adebayo, University of Ibadan

Abstract Despite the critical importance of Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) services for overall well-being, Nigerian youths still have limited access to SRH services. This cross-sectional design study examined an index of SRH services access among married young women in Nigeria using 9 indicators. Nigeria Demographic and Survey Data, 2018 was used. Data were analyzed using a logistic regression model (a0.05). Respondents’ mean age and SRH index score was 20.53±2.3 years and 5.38±1.94, respectively. The percentage of women with good SRH was highest among the rich (10.7%) and least among the poor (4.2%) (p<0.05). The likelihood of SRH access was higher among the teenagers (aOR=3.042, 95% C.I=2.686-3.446, p<0.001) than those aged 20-24 years and 100.2% higher among the young married women who have at least secondary education (aOR=2.002, 95% C.I=1.713-2.336, p<0.001) than those with at most primary education, but 27.9% significantly lower among the Muslims (aOR=0.721, 95% C.I=0.589-0.883, p<0.001) than the Christians. Other predictors of good SRH access were region, ethnicity, residence, wealth index, and media access. The proportion of young married women with good SRH was low in Nigeria. A regional-specific intervention and media access to SRH information will improve SRH services among young married women in Nigeria.

Keywords: Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights, Children, Adolescents, and Youth

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