By Mike Mwaniki and Samwel Doe Ouma
Kenya will today (September 26) join the rest of the world in observing the World contraception day.
The event, which aims at raising awareness about contraception will be commemorated in Makueni county under the theme: “Chaguo la wote, making contraception accessible”.
Apart from raising awareness, the day also serves to reinforce Kenya’s dedication to achieving the FP 2030 goals.
This involves upholding reproductive health rights and empowering individuals to make free and responsible decisions regarding the number and spacing of their children.
Experts say this is part of its development agenda guided by international accords such as the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD).
Speaking during a media briefing held in Nairobi, the inSupply Health chief executive Yasmin Chandani lauded the Health Ministry for prioritising family planning through investing in expanding access and new innovations especially to girls and women.
“Currently we need to embrace innovations such as the recently introduced Depot medroxyprogestene acetate subcutaneous (DMPASC),”.
According to Chandani, inSupply Health in collaboration with Ministry of Health (MoH) and other key partners, is spearheading an initiative to optimize pharmacy channels for family planning (FP) services.
She said that the Optimizing the Pharmacy Channel (OPC) Project aims to increase access to quality contraceptive services, including implants, by strengthening community and retail pharmacies as reliable service points to increase access as per the FP2030 commitment. ”
According to reliable sources between January and June 2025, more than 151, 539 girls and women were currently using the self-injecting DMPASC in 11 counties in Kenya.
The OPC project aligns with Kenya’s Total Market Approach, which aims to reduce the burden on public healthcare facilities by integrating private-sector solutions. As part of this effort, pharmacies will be equipped to provide self-care contraceptives, such as self-injectable DMPA-SC, empowering women to manage their reproductive health independently.
The method is available in select pharmacies in the 11 counties of Nairobi, Kiambu, Kajiado, Meru, Narok, Nakuru, Uasin Gishu, Kisumu, Kisii, Kericho and Machakos.
The family planning method which is effective for 12 weeks costs between Sh300 to Sh500.
Earlier, the Health ministry’s reproductive, maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health department head, Dr Edward Serem described family planning as a “key life-saving intervention” that significantly improves maternal and child health outcomes.
“Access to contraception reduces unintended pregnancies and maternal deaths, (thereby) promoting healthier families and communities…
“Family planning has a strong positive impact on socio-economic development by increasing household savings, supporting female workforce participation and accelerating demographic transition in Kenya,”.
According to experts, some of the available contraceptive methods in Kenya include male and female condoms, injectable contraceptives, intrauterine devices (also called IUDs—hormonal and Non-hormonal IUDs), contraceptive pills (including emergency contraceptive pills), implants and permanent methods (such as tubal ligation for women and vasectomy for men).Contraceptive ethods in Kenya
According to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey (2022), almost everyone (99 per cent) has heard of at least one modern contraceptive method.
“About 6 in 10 married women use contraception (57 per cent use modern methods, 6 per cent use traditional.
“The most popular methods among married women are injectables (20 per cent), implants (19 per cent), pills (8 per cent),”.
Acoording to KDHS for sexually active unmarried women, most use some form of contraception “Of those who do, condoms are the most common method,”.
At the same time, use of modern methods has increased significantly over decades, especially implant s with the survey noting that use of contraception rises with education and wealth and varies by region within Kenya.
