Charles Oduor In Summary
- Two Kakamega fathers are challenging the taboo that contraception is a woman’s responsibility.
- Protus Wanjala persuaded his wife to space their children despite cultural and religious concerns.
- Tyson Andanje, 28, chose vasectomy after deciding he had reached his desired family size.
- Their experiences show how male involvement can strengthen informed family-planning decisions.
In parts of Western Kenya, conversations about contraception can still collide with cultural beliefs, religion and fear. But in Shinyalu and Ikolomani, Kakamega County, two fathers are offering a different picture. Protus Wanjala decided to support his wife in using contraception after experiencing the financial pressure of raising a child. Nearby, 28-year-old Tyson Andanje chose vasectomy after having two children. Their decisions highlight the importance of men participating in reproductive-health decisions and show that family planning can be a shared responsibility rather than a burden placed on women.
One Father Chose To Plan Ahead
For Wanjala, a father of two from Shinyalu, family planning is closely linked to the realities of raising children in a difficult economy.
His first child was unexpected, an experience that taught him the financial and practical demands of parenthood.
“I am a father of two children. The first child was unexpected and from the experience of the hardship on raising the first child, we decided to give a three to five-year gap before the second child,” Wanjala says.
That experience shaped his decision to discuss contraception with his wife.
“The reason I decided to advise my wife to procure family planning is because of the current economic state of the country. There is need to have proper spacing between the birth of your children in order to prepare well for the birth of the next child and make it easier to monitor and raise the children,” he says.
For Wanjala, spacing is also about protecting the wellbeing of both mother and children.
“If the second child comes earlier than expected, the health of the first child and the health of the mother can deteriorate as well as the health of the child because the child would not have gotten enough breast milk,” he says.
His wife, however, was initially reluctant.
Breaking Through Cultural Resistance
Wanjala says cultural and religious beliefs shaped his wife’s initial resistance to contraception.
“At first my wife refused to procure family planning because of cultural beliefs, as the Bible says we were born to fill the earth, and so she saw it wise to always give birth,” he says.
Instead of abandoning the conversation, Wanjala says he took time to explain the importance of birth spacing.
“I took time to convince her on the importance of family planning. I further told her the importance of proper spacing to allow children to grow well, and she finally agreed,” he says.
His decision has attracted mixed reactions from his friends, with some questioning his choice to encourage his wife to use contraception.
“Among my friends there are different views about my decision to advise my wife into family planning. A section calls me a coward,” Wanjala says.
But he says his experience has strengthened his belief that family planning can help couples manage the demands of raising children.
“I compare my situation with my friends who are struggling to raise children, as many as five children, and who are struggling with planning and raising all five children at once. Family planning is here to help us control our lives. I therefore support family planning as my family life has a positive progression,” he says.
Wanjala says he did not choose vasectomy because he might still want another child and was concerned about permanently losing his fertility.
A Young Father Takes The Other Path
Andanje, a 28-year-old father of two from Ikolomani, took a different approach.
Having reached his desired number of children, he chose vasectomy as his family-planning method. His decision was partly influenced by concerns about the potential medical complications his wife could experience from hormonal implants and other female-centred contraceptive methods.
For Andanje, taking responsibility for contraception also means challenging the belief that family planning should be left to women.
He says some young men fear vasectomy because of misconceptions about sexual performance and possible side effects. His own experience, however, has given him confidence in the procedure.
Andanje encourages other men to seek accurate information before making reproductive-health decisions based on rumors. He also believes family planning allows couples to budget effectively and avoid unintended pregnancies.
Although he has not personally experienced discrimination from his wife’s brothers, he believes sharing his experience publicly can help educate other men and reduce the stigma surrounding vasectomy.
Vasectomy Requires Informed Choice
Dr Victor Rasungu, Director at NAYA, says vasectomy provides a permanent family-planning option for men who are certain they have reached their desired family size.
“Vasectomy is a permanent method of family planning that is highly cost-effective in the long term. The procedure involves a relatively short healing period of approximately one week,” Rasungu says.
He says the method is highly effective but stresses the importance of understanding what it involves before undergoing the procedure.
“The success rate is 99.9 percent, but there remains a small chance of conception. This is why additional contraception is required for the first three months after the procedure,” he says.
Rasungu also cautions men against assuming vasectomy can easily be reversed.
“One significant disadvantage is that reversal is expensive and does not guarantee full restoration of fertility. Vasectomy also does not provide protection against HIV or other sexually transmitted infections,” he says.
For men who are not ready for a permanent method, options remain limited.
“Currently, men primarily rely on condoms or vasectomy for reproductive control. Nevertheless, male contraceptive pills are presently undergoing testing and may offer future alternatives to condoms and vasectomy once they are rolled out,” Rasungu says.
He encourages men to choose methods based on their individual circumstances and certainty about future childbearing.
“The uptake of vasectomy is increasing as more men decide they have reached their desired number of children,” he says.
Kakamega’s Family Planning Gains
Kakamega County is making notable progress in family planning, according to the 2022 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey. Sixty-three percent of married women aged 15–49 were using modern contraceptive methods, while 13 percent had an unmet need for family planning. The county recorded 80 percent of demand for family planning satisfied through modern methods, compared with 75 percent nationally. Kakamega’s fertility rate stood at 3.7 children per woman, while 15 percent of women aged 15–19 had begun childbearing.
The survey also highlights the role of couples in reproductive-health decisions. 93.4 percent of married women in Kakamega participated in decisions about family planning, with 52.7 percent reporting joint decision-making with their husbands, while 40.6 percent made the decisions themselves. Only 6.3 percent said their husbands made the decision. The experiences of Wanjala and Andanje therefore give a human face to the county’s statistics, showing two men taking different but active roles in family planning.
Across Kenya, modern contraceptive use among married women rose from 18 percent in 1989 to 57 percent in 2022. The 2022 KDHS found that 63 percent of currently married women were using contraception, while 14 percent had an unmet need. Seventy-six percent had demand for family planning, with 75 percent of that demand satisfied through modern methods, showing continued progress alongside persistent gaps.
Story by Charles Etale | Published by Lubao FM Digital Media Department
