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Periodical article | Leiden University catalogue | WorldCat |
Title: | Public versus Private Resources for Childbirth and Care in Ghana |
Author: | Badasu, Delali |
Year: | 2001 |
Periodical: | Research Review (ISSN 0855-4412) |
Volume: | 17 |
Issue: | 2 |
Pages: | 45-62 |
Language: | English |
Notes: | biblio. refs. |
Geographic terms: | Ghana West Africa |
Subjects: | abortion family planning child care Health, Nutrition, and Medicine Women and Their Children Family Planning and Contraception Fertility and Infertility Medicine, Nutrition, Public Health Birth control Contraceptives Family planning programmes Child welfare |
Abstract: | A national family planning programme launched in Ghana in 1970 and relaunched in 1991 and 2002 has aimed at achieving a high prevalence of modern contraceptive use in Ghanaian society. Unfortunately, the desired impact has not been achieved. In fact, modern contraception has not even contributed significantly to the fertility transition that began in Ghana over a decade ago. This essay suggests that abortion and other alternative resources available for managing child birth and care probably undermine efforts at promoting modern contraception in Ghanaian society. These alternative resources, collectively referred to as 'private resources for fertility management', range from abortion to post-natal control measures, such as child fostering, early marriage of girls, early entry into the labour market and migration. The essay concludes that attempts to improve contraceptive prevalence in Ghanaian society must not focus on improving the family planning/reproductive health delivery alone. A political economy approach to implementing family planning programmes which emphasizes child welfare policies and programmes must also be considered, and the practice of abortion needs to be tackled, since it has been a major health issue and need not be a preferred method of averting births when other means are available. Bibliogr., notes, ref. [ASC Leiden abstract] |