This article assesses the knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) of family planning and associated factors among Rohingya women living in refugee camps in Bangladesh. As of March 2021, there were approximately 884,000 Rohingya refugees living in 34 camps in Ukhiya and Teknaf Upazilas of Cox’s Bazar District, Bangladesh.
The study was conducted in Rohingya refugee Camp-4 in Cox’s Bazar in December 2019. The study population consisted of 400 married Rohingya refugee women of reproductive age (18 to 49 years old) who had been living with their husbands and had delivered at least one child at least one year before the survey was conducted. Data was collected using a structured questionnaire that included questions on socio-demographic characteristics, access to family planning services, and knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) of family planning.
Main findings:
- More than half of the participants (52 percent) had no formal education, and more than three-quarters (78 percent) were housewives. On average, the participants were 26 years old and had 4 children.
- The participants accessed information from various sources, including the radio (58 percent) and internet (26 percent). For information related to family planning, 45 percent relied on NGO and health workers.
- Most participants had knowledge of one or more contraceptive methods, and about three-quarters regularly used contraceptives during the survey period. The main reasons given for not using contraception were their husband’s disapproval, a desire to get pregnant, and the belief that contraception is a sin.
- Most participants had benefited from one or more family planning programs or services provided by an NGO or the government.
- Overall, 56 percent of the women had good family planning knowledge, while 44 percent had poor knowledge. More than half of the women lacked knowledge about the appropriate age of marriage for a girl. About 60 percent of the women were unaware that birth control did not cause physical harm.
- Overall 54 percent had a positive attitude to family planning. More than two-thirds of the women thought family planning methods should not be used without the husband’s permission. Fifty-seven percent of participants thought that a couple should continue bearing children until a son is born. Forty percent of the women were ashamed and afraid to discuss family planning matters with their husbands.
- Participants who had a profession, had fewer children, whose primary source of family planning knowledge was through a physician/nurse, had family planning interventions in the camp, and had talked with a health care provider about family planning were found to have better knowledge and attitudes on family planning.
The authors conclude that Rohingya refugee women were a marginalized population in family planning and their comprehensive KAP of family planning was poor. Contraceptive uptake among the Rohingya women was low due to a lack of education and family planning awareness.