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  • Title: Men targeted for family planning in Zambia.
    Author: Chirambo K.
    Journal: Netw Res Triangle Park N C; 1992 Aug; 13(1):16-7. PubMed ID: 12317722.
    Abstract:
    80% of women using contraception in Zambia use oral contraceptives (OCs), yet they often complain about side effects. 66% of people polled at family planning (FP) clinics prefer OCs and 30% chose condoms. Nevertheless only 10% of the 60% of married couples familiar with FP use contraception. This contributes to Zambia having 1 of the highest annual population growth rates in the world (3.4%). The Planned Parenthood Association of Zambia (PPAZ) thinks that if males become more knowledgeable about FP, the population growth would slow down. At least 60% of men in Zambia approve of their wives using FP, yet they are slow to use male contraception. They say condoms reduce sensation and wives often consider condoms a nuisance. The AIDS epidemic forces men to rethink their views toward condom use, however. Those 30% of men who do use condoms are more likely to use them with their girlfriends or women with whom they are unfamiliar. So they are not using them for FP purposes. Men fear vasectomy because they perceive it to cause impotence. Considerable education to counter this myth is needed to increase the number of vasectomies. Besides some men prefer their wives be sterilized rather than themselves because if the men lose all their children they can have other children with other wives. PPAZ aims programs at men in order to expand their participation and nurture their influence in FP matters. It has a male counseling program serving rural villages along the railroad lines which begin in the northern copper belt and end in urban areas in the south to promote birth spacing. It is working with companies to include FP services in their clinics so men can learn more about FP. FP specialists in Zambia foresee an increase in male support of FP as they realize the difficulty of supporting large families during the economic crises.
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