Private Sector Counts - Family Planning

Explore the role of public and private sources of care

About the Data

The data used in this tool come from the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) program. For a detailed explanation of the indicators and surveys of the DHS program, go to dhsprogram.com/data.

Private Sector Counts – Family Planning includes data from 37 low- and middle-income countries. All USAID Population and Reproductive Health priority countries, Ouagadougou partnership countries, and FP2020 countries that have a DHS from 2012 or later are included. The full list of countries and surveys is below.

All DHS data used in the family planning analysis are reported by women who were asked if they are currently doing anything or using a method to avoid pregnancy. If women are using a modern method, they are then asked where they obtained the method the last time.

Changes over Time

For 32 countries, the tool includes the two most recent surveys for each country, allowing users to make comparisons over time. New data spans from 2012 to 2018. Old data spans from 2004-2013. In five countries (Afghanistan, Gambia, Myanmar, Togo, and Yemen), only one survey is included, as no prior survey exists or has been conducted since 2000. The full list of countries and surveys is below.

Sample Size Limitations

This analysis excludes results when the sample size is below 50 respondents (unweighted). When this occurs, country results will not appear on the data visualization.

Demographic Characteristics

  • Marital Status: Married women are those who are currently married, and unmarried women include never- and formerly-married women. In five countries (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Egypt, Pakistan, and Yemen), the DHS did not collect family planning information from never-married women. These countries are therefore excluded from visualizations by marital status.
  • Socioeconomic Status: The poorest and richest women are those from the bottom and top two DHS wealth quintiles in each country, respectively.
  • Urban and Rural Residence: This analysis uses the DHS categorizations of urban and rural residence, which typically follow census categorizations.

Downloading the Data

Use the Download Icondownload icon at the bottom of each visualization to download a PDF of the visualization or an Excel file of the raw data by selecting the “Crosstab” option. To enable the Excel “Crosstab” option, click on the visualization first.

Definition of Terms

Sources of modern contraceptives - The sources where modern contraceptive users reported obtaining their methods are grouped into public sector, private sector, or other. Private sources are further divided into four categories (see below).

  • Public: All public sources including hospitals, clinics, and community health workers.
  • Private:
    • Private clinical: Private hospitals, clinics, doctors, nurses, midwives, health centers, maternity homes, other private medical.
    • Private pharmacy or drug shop: Pharmacy, drug shop, dispensary, chemist
    • Private shop or market: Shop, market, bar, disco, vending machine, gas station, grocery store, guest house/hotel, warehouse, other private
    • Nongovernmental and faith-based organizations (NGO and FBO): Mission hospital, mission health center, church, mosque, religious institutions, NGO health facility, mobile clinic, fieldworker
  • Other: Friend, relative, partner, parent, traditional healer, traditional birth attendant, school, respondent herself, “other,” don’t know, missing data.

Modern contraceptive prevalence rate (mCPR) - The percentage of all women of reproductive age (15-49) who are currently using one or more modern methods of contraception.

Methods of modern contraception - Male condoms, oral contraceptive pills, injectables (DMPA), intrauterine devices (IUDs), implants, and sterilization (male and female). This analysis excludes Lactational amenorrhea method (LAM) and the DHS’s category of “other modern” methods, as source is not systematically asked for these methods. “Other modern” methods includes female condoms, diaphragms, foam, jelly, Standard Days Method, and any other modern methods specifically asked about in the DHS questionnaire.

Short-acting Methods (SAMs) - Male condoms, oral contraceptive pills, and injectables (DMPA).

Long-acting reversible and permanent methods (LAPMs) - Implants, intrauterine devices (IUDs), and sterilization.

Country estimates - The unit of analysis is all women of reproductive age (15-49), except where noted under marital status. Country estimates were calculated using sampling weights provided by the DHS.

Countries and surveys used for analysis

  1. Asia
    • Afghanistan 2015
    • Bangladesh 2011 and 2014
    • Cambodia 2010 and 2014
    • India 2005-06 and 2015-16
    • Indonesia 2012 and 2017
    • Myanmar 2015-16
    • Nepal 2011 and 2016
    • Pakistan 2012-13 and 2017-18
    • Philippines 2013 and 2017
    • Tajikistan 2012 and 2017
    • Timor-Leste 2009-10 and 2016
  2. West and Central Africa
    • Benin 2011-12 and 2017-18
    • Chad 2004 and 2014-15
    • DRC 2007 and 2013-14
    • Gambia 2013
    • Ghana 2008 and 2014
    • Guinea 2012 and 2018
    • Liberia 2007 and 2013
    • Mali 2012-13 and 2018
    • Niger 2008 and 2012
    • Nigeria 2013 and 2018
    • Senegal 2010-11 and 2017
    • Sierra Leone 2008 and 2013
    • Togo 2013-14
  3. East and Southern Africa
    • Burundi 2010 and 2016-17
    • Ethiopia 2011 and 2016
    • Kenya 2008-09 and 2014
    • Lesotho 2009 and 2014
    • Malawi 2010 and 2015-16
    • Rwanda 2010 and 2014-15
    • Tanzania 2010 and 2015-16
    • Uganda 2011 and 2016
    • Zambia 2007 and 2013-14
    • Zimbabwe 2010-11 and 2015
  4. North Africa and Middle East
    • Egypt 2008 and 2014
    • Yemen 2013
  5. Latin America
    • Haiti 2012 and 2016-17