Seeking Fertility Treatment in Senegal: When Tradition and Modernity Go Hand in Hand

Mame Soukeye Mbaye , Population Council
Fatou Mbow, Population Council
Thierno Souleymane Ball Anne, Population Council

Background: Our study is based on an exploration of the knowledge, opinions and experiences of men and women seeking fertility services, including barriers and facilitators. The provision of modern fertility services is confronted by the provision of services by traditional healers, despite their availability in the Dakar region. Methods: This is an essentially qualitative study conducted in the Dakar region. It was conducted through in-depth individual interviews with women and men who had had access to fertility services (15) and providers of these services in health facilities (12), and 47 participants in focus groups. Results: Traditional medicine was mentioned as another alternative to modern medicine. There were two types of traditional medicine: private practices offering treatments based on botanical products, and 'marabouts' who use mystical knowledge to 'consult' women to determine whether they are possessed by a djinn or the victim of an evil spell that may cause infertility. Conclusion: The options for care reveal inequalities in terms of financial accessibility: biomedical care and medically assisted reproduction (MAR) for the most affluent. Traditional healers, with all the legitimacy conferred on them by their clients, position themselves in the infertility market.

Keywords: Fertility, Qualitative data/methods/approaches, Families, Unions and Households, Inequality, Disadvantage and Discrimination

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