Young Women and Contraception: How Religion Plays a Role in Burkina Faso, Kenya, and Niger

Religion is often seen as a big factor in whether young women use contraception or not. But what do young women in Burkina Faso, Kenya, and Niger really think? Between August and November 2022, researchers talked to married and unmarried young women, ages 18-24, who use modern contraception and practice either Christianity or Islam. In each of these countries, many young women felt their religion wasn't very supportive of contraceptive use. However, some differences were noticed, like in Niger and among Muslim women in Kenya, where married women using contraceptives for spacing out pregnancies or health reasons were more accepted. Why do these young women use contraception? They cited real-life situations, personal choices, and the belief that it's their right to decide. Most married women didn't worry about their religious community finding out, while unmarried women were more concerned about the reactions from both their religious and broader communities. This shows that while religion is important, it might not always influence these young women's decisions about contraception. As more young people start using contraception, whether they feel their religion supports it or not, it could lead to more acceptance and access for all young women, married or not.