Background: Communities in South Sudan have endured decades of conflict. Protracted conflict exacerbated\nreproductive health disparities and gender inequities. This study, conducted prior to the countryââ?¬â?¢s 2011\nindependence, aimed to assess attitudes toward gender inequitable norms related to sexual relationships and\nreproductive health and the effects of sex, age, and education on these attitudes.\nMethods: Applying a community-based participatory research approach and quota sampling, 680 adult male and\nfemale respondents were interviewed in seven sites within South Sudan in 2009ââ?¬â??2011. The verbally administered\nsurvey assessed attitudes using the Gender Equitable Men scale. Data were stratified by sex, age (=35 years and\n>35 years), and education.\nResults: Of 680 respondents, 352 were female, 326 were male, and 2 did not indicate their sex. The majority of\nwomen (77%) and men (74%) agreed ââ?¬Å?a man needs other women, even if things with his wife are fineââ?¬Â.\nRespondents who reported no education (60%) were more likely than those who reported any education (45%)\nto agree ââ?¬Å?if a woman is married, she should have sex with her husband whenever he wants to, even if she doesnââ?¬â?¢t\nwant toââ?¬Â (p = 0.002). The majority of women (74%) and men (73%) agreed ââ?¬Å?it is a womanââ?¬â?¢s responsibility to avoid\ngetting pregnantââ?¬Â. Respondents who reported no education (81%) were more likely than those who reported\nany education (72%) to agree with this statement (p = 0.04). When asked about condom use, the majority of\nrespondents, across both sexes and both age groups, agreed ââ?¬Å?it would be outrageous for a wife to ask her husband\nto use a condomââ?¬Â and ââ?¬Å?women who carry condoms are easyââ?¬Â. There were no statistically significant differences\nbetween the two age groups for any of the assessed gender inequitable norms.\nConclusion: The study reveals differences in attitudes toward gender inequitable sexual and reproductive health\nnorms among those surveyed in South Sudan when stratified by sex and education. As a new nation seeks to\nstrengthen its health system, these data can inform sexual and reproductive health policies and programming in\nSouth Sudan.
Loading....