Men cold on family planning

Men cold on family planning

MATARAM, West Nusa Tenggara: The participation of Indonesian
men in family planning programs is very low, accounting for just
three percent (or 750,000) of the 25 million registered
participants, an official said on Monday.

Imam Haryadi, a deputy chairman of the National Family
Planning Coordinating Body (BKKBN), said that the low level of
participation was due to the limited choice of contraceptives.

The most common contraceptive methods used by Indonesian men
are condoms (0.7 percent), vasectomy (0.4 percent), coitus
interuptus (or ejaculation outside the vagina, 0.8 percent) and
masturbation (1.1 percent), BKKBN statistics shows.

The level of participation is the lowest among four countries
that have a majority Muslim population, Pakistan (5.2 percent),
Bangladesh (13.9 percent) and Malaysia (16.8 percent).

Another major cause for the low participation of men is the
misperception that family planning and reproductive health are
chiefly women's affairs.

In more conservative areas, open discussion on reproductive
health is still considered taboo for religious and customary
reasons, Imam added. --Antara