Seasonal Migration Frustrates Ethiopia’s Family Planning

Women and children take a break from the scorching sun in Ethiopia's arid Somali Region. Because of the nomadic life of the community it has been difficult to provide family planning services. Credit: Miriam Gathigah/IPSBy Miriam GathigahDOLLO ADO, Ethiopia, Jan 20 2014 (IPS) Yohamin Kesete, 32, and her six children live in Dollo Ado, a pastoralist community in Ethiopia’s drought-stricken Somali Region. But this is not where you will always find them. Kesete says that as temperatures soar and the rains become even more rare, her family is often forced to leave the area in search of water and pasture. “We have to survive, so we move to other regions. This is a hardship area. There are times when I have had to move while heavily pregnant because it gets too dry and there is nothing to eat. We cannot stay in Dollo Ado just so that we can deliver in hospital, we will die of starvation,” she tells IPS.“Without access to family planning, women in pastoralist communities … will continue to give birth until their wombs run dry.” modern midwife Feven Alazar. Her village lies some 980 km away from the capital, Addis Ababa, and because of the nomadic life of the community here it has been difficult for the government and community-based NGOs to provide family planning services. “Even though I can barely feed my current children, I am worried that I will have six more children before I am 40 years old,” Kesete says. Family planning has been recognised and implemented as a...
Source: IPS Inter Press Service - Health - Category: Global & Universal Authors: Tags: Africa Development & Aid Featured Food & Agriculture Gender Headlines Health Human Rights Population Poverty & MDGs Projects Regional Categories Women's Health Source Type: news