Barriers to family planning service use among the urban poor in Pakistan

Rob Stephenson, Emory University
Monique M. Hennink, University of Southampton

This paper examines the determinants of family planning service use and the barriers reported in accessing family planning services among urban poor women in Pakistan, identifying the characteristics of women who report various types of barriers to using family planning services. Data were collected from a household survey of 5338 married women of reproductive age (15-45) from poor areas of six cities. The approval of her husband and other family members are a strong influence on a woman’s ability to use family planning services. The reporting of economic, administrative and cognitive barriers to service use were largely influenced by individual and household socioeconomic factors, whilst psychosocial and physical access are closely associated with indicators of female autonomy. The results highlight that even amongst seemingly homogenous urban slum populations there exists important demographic and socioeconomic variations in the experience of barriers to service use.