Factors affecting utilization of family planning services among women in child bearing age (15-49) in Hargeisa Somaliland

Despite the great benefits of family planning services at individual level and the community as a whole, the rate of family planning utilization is low in Somaliland and like the other sub-Saharan countries Somaliland has high burden of unintended pregnancy, unsafe abortion and maternal mortality rate. Besides nothing much is known about the factors influencing the utilization of family planning services therefore this study was aimed to asses' factors influencing utilization of family planning services among women in reproductive age in the capital city of Somaliland, Hargeisa. The study found that Family planning was previously underutilized among women in Hargeisa Somaliland, with just 23.9 percent utilizing it, and the percentage is now much lower, with only 22.5 percent of women using it presently. Nonetheless, just 22.2 percent of respondents stated they want to utilize family planning programs in the future, owing to the fact that the majority of women 27.4 percent expressed a desire to have more children, and their partners may not accept it 18.9 percent. therefore, the overall family planning utilization among women in Hargeisa Somaliland is low and women's utilization of family planning services is influenced by their degree of education, residence place (urban or rural), and what they do for a living. Lack of partner acceptance, myths and strong cultural believes also negatively associate with the low utilization of family planning services among women in Hargeisa Somaliland. Keywords: Family planning, Contraceptives, Women, Utilizations, Somaliland