Sociodemographics and Family Planning Knowledge, Attitude and Perception of Married Rural Farmers in Southwestern Nigeria

Nigeria has seen its infant under five and maternal mortality rates rise to sky high values of 105 and 191 per 1000 live births and 1000 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births. United Nations report showed that 14% of the world’s deaths related to childbearing are in Nigeria and nearly one in six maternal childbirth deaths globally occurs in Nigeria. This study assessed the knowledge, attitudes and perception of the male farmers towards family planning and correlates the respondents’ knowledge with attitudinal assessment and practices on family planning. Data was collected randomly using a pretested and structured questionnaire on 401 married male farmers in three south-western states. The data analysis revealed that 48.9% of the farmers had poor knowledge and 20.2% had very poor knowledge about family planning. Only 1.7% had good knowledge. Education, occupation and previous number of children are positively related to knowledge of family planning while income had negative correlation among the farmers. The study recommends introduction of basic family planning education into the primary school curriculum and in the extension services to the farmers and as well motivate farmers to participate in Lifelong learning. Mass media could be employed to raise men’s awareness about family planning in the sub region.