Publication: Involving Men in Reproductive and Fertility Issues : Insights from Punjab
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Date
2013-08
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2013-08
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Pakistan's slackening in its fertility transition is a cause of concern internationally, as well as within the country. This study has a twofold aim of exploring couples' dynamics during decision processes regarding fertility intentions and practices along with community perceptions of male-focused interventions and men's suggestions for future intervention strategies. The findings are based on three data sources. The primary data source is a 2013 qualitative study in four districts of Punjab province. The second data source is secondary analysis of the baseline and end line surveys of the Family Advancement for Life and Health (FALAH 2007-2012) project. The third data source is the Pakistan Demographic Health Survey (PDHS) 1990-1991 and 2006-2007, which were used to assess trends over two decades. The 2013 qualitative study was in four districts of Punjab, namely Jhelum, Bahawalpur, D.G. Khan, and Okara. The first three were FALAH districts in which interventions were tested, while the fourth was chosen as a control district. A total of 12 focus group discussions were conducted with men, and in-depth interviews were conducted with 26 couples in these districts. Data from 2,649 men and 638 couples from the FALAH baseline and end line surveys were analyzed to assess the impact of FALAH male-directed interventions on fertility intentions and behavior. This study seeks to explore the decision-making process of couples in the move from intentions to fertility behavior. It also examines the readiness of men to be involved in family planning (FP) programs through different male-centered interventions. In-depth interviews (IDIs) with couples are especially direct in gauging spousal perception of the partner's FP approval or disapproval. The study focuses on urban and semi-urban areas of Punjab province and can be used, at least indicatively, for interregional and temporal analyses within the Pakistani context.
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“Kamran, Iram; Khan, Mumraiz; Tasneem, Zeba. 2013. Involving Men in Reproductive and Fertility Issues : Insights from Punjab. © http://hdl.handle.net/10986/16987 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
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Publication Involving Men in Reproductive and Fertility Issues : Insights from Punjab(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2014-01)Drawing on three sources, a 2013 qualitative study in four districts of Punjab province; a targeted analysis of the baseline and end line surveys of the Family Advancement for Life and Health (FALAH 2007-2012) project; and the Pakistan Demographic Health Survey (PDHS) of 1990-1991 and of 2006-2007, this study explores Pakistani (especially Punjabi) couples' dynamics during their decision processes on fertility intentions and practices, along with community perceptions of male-focused interventions as well as men's suggestions for future intervention strategies. It finds that men in Punjab seem now more concerned about their fertility intentions and practices due to the financial challenges of raising large families. This concern has not only increased spousal communication about family size and contraceptive use but has also encouraged Punjabi men to practice family planning. Most men now realize that either they or their wives should use family planning. It is the next step, however, of translating intention into practice, which is a challenge. Supply-side issues, including absence or paucity of family planning services as well as poor quality of services (including service providers' lack of capability to manage side effects) are the main factors hindering couples' adoption of family planning. Perceived or experienced side effects of contraceptive methods are other factors. Men's positive attitudes and their readiness to be involved in family planning programs suggest that the efforts of convincing men to use contraceptives have been effective and this it is now time for direct reproductive health interventions for men in Punjab. Yet heavy spending on media campaigns may not be as effective as interpersonal interventions. A focused effort to mobilize men through male-specific interventions is likely to increase the demand for contraceptives. These interventions have to be backed up by improved supply of contraceptives and availability of family planning services in accessible facilities.Publication Fertility Decline in Algeria 1980-2006(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2010-05)Like other countries in the Middle East and North Africa region, Algeria has undergone a demographic transition. But Algeria's fertility decline defies conventional explanation. Despite inauspicious starting conditions-a high total fertility rate, reluctant policy environment, and delayed implementation of a national family planning program-Algeria has surpassed some of its neighbors in fertility reduction. Before its fertility transition, Algeria had one of the highest crude birth rates in the world, nearly 50 per 1,000. 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Pakistan's high fertility rate began to decline gradually after the late 1980s and has continued to fall since then, though progress has been uneven and there have been signs of a slowdown in recent years. Unlike the other four case study countries (Algeria, Botswana, Iran, and Nicaragua), the history of fertility reduction in Pakistan has not been an overwhelming success story but rather a story of challenges, partial responses, and shortcomings that offer abundant lessons for other high-fertility countries as well as planners in Pakistan.Publication Islamic Inheritance Law, Son Preference and Fertility Behavior of Muslim Couples in Indonesia(2012-02-01)This paper examines whether the son preference and fertility behavior of Muslim couples respond to the risk of inheritance expropriation by their extended family. According to traditional Islamic inheritance principles, only the son of a deceased man can exclude his male agnates from inheritance and preserve his estate within the nuclear household. The paper exploits cross-sectional and time variation in the application of the Islamic inheritance exclusion rule in Indonesia: between Muslim and non-Muslim populations affected by different legal systems, across men with different sibling sex composition, and before and after a change in Islamic law that allowed female children to exclude male relatives. 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