Women face resistance from husbands in family planning

Calvince Onyango* a resident of Homa Bay Sub-county has been at loggerheads with his wife, Teresa Akoth*, over her decision to start family planning.

Tension erupted two weeks ago at their home in Nyalkinyi village after Akoth expressed her desire to take a break from childbearing after the birth of their second child.

Akoth, a mother of two, wants to pause childbearing for at least two years to focus on raising her young family. She has pleaded with her husband to allow her to use an implant as a form of contraception, a request he has adamantly refused.

“As a wife, I want to practise family planning so that I don’t conceive again soon. I have explained this to my husband, but he refuses to agree,” Akoth says.

Onyango, however, strongly opposes the idea. He argues that family planning can prevent the birth of a child destined to bring good fortune to the family.

“If our parents had practised family planning, some of us would never have been born,” he said. “I believe allowing my wife to use family planning could stop us from having children who might turn out to be productive and successful.”

His argument reflects a broader cultural barrier: negative attitudes among men that continue to hinder family planning efforts in Homa Bay County.

During a recent sensitisation programme organised by the Community Aid Transformation Alliance Group (CATAG), Ipas Africa Alliance, and other partners in Ndhiwa, Mbita, and Homa Bay sub-counties, it emerged that many men still discourage or forbid their wives from accessing contraception.

According to Mary Omwanda, the chairperson of the Nyarongi Paralegal Network in Ndhiwa, women who want to manage their fertility responsibly are fearful.

“Many women still fear seeking family planning services because their husbands will not allow them. They fear punishment, and this has become a serious issue in many households,” Omwanda said.

She added that some women are forced to use contraceptives secretly, a risky choice that often leads to domestic conflict when they are discovered.

“Women who go for family planning without their husbands’ consent face hostility at home once their partners find out. Some men even become violent,” she explained.

CATAG programmes coordinator, Bazrah Dahir, attributed the problem to men’s limited understanding of the purpose and benefits of family planning.

“Many men who stop their wives from accessing these services simply don’t understand their importance. They feel excluded from the process,” Dahir said.

To address this, CATAG has launched an extensive community sensitisation campaign targeting both men and women across several sectors.

“We are engaging boda boda riders, fishermen, women, and even female sex workers to raise awareness and promote positive attitudes towards family planning,” she said. “The goal is to make both men and women understand that family planning benefits the entire household.”

Dinah Odoyo, a reproductive health advocate with the Reproductive Health Initiative CBO, emphasises that family planning empowers families to make sustainable decisions about the number of children they can care for without straining.

“It allows couples to plan their families responsibly so that they can raise their children without financial or emotional strain,” Odoyo noted.

Faith leaders have also joined the conversation. Imam Zeinul Abidin of Homa Bay Jamia Mosque urges residents to abandon cultural and religious misconceptions that discourage family planning.

*Names have been changed to protect identities.