International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation (IJRSI) | Volume IX, Issue I, January 2022 | ISSN 2321–2705

Prevalence and Risk Factors of Teenage Pregnancy in Liberia: Evidence from Demographic Health Survey

Standee P. Weah^1*, Suresh Jungari², Bal Govind Chauhan³ and Sosanwo Tobi Samson^4
1Master of Public Health, Interdisciplinary School of Public Health, SavitribaiPhule Pune University, Pune, India City: Pune, Country: India
²Assistant Professor, Department of Public health & Mortality and Studies, International Institute for Population Sciences, Mumbai, India. City: Mumbai, Country: India
³Assistant Professor, Population Research Centre, Gokhle Institute of Economics, Pune, India City: Pune, Country: India
Corresponding Author*

Abstract: Introduction: The rate of adolescent pregnancy varies enormously between countries and within countries. Teenage pregnancy is most common in lower-income and less-educated communities. Adolescent pregnancy is a significant public health concern in Liberia, posing an economic and social burden. This study is aimed at finding the prevalence and examining the risk factors of teenage pregnancy in Liberia.
Method: The data for this present study was from the fifth round of Liberia’s Demographic and Health Survey, 2019-2020. The participants included in this study were 1,657 women aged 15 to 19 years. This study used descriptive statistics and binary logistic regression techniques to assess the effects of demographic, socio-economic, and reproductive health indicators on adolescent pregnancy.
Results: The study found that 30.3% of teenage women aged 15 to 19 years had begun childbearing during the survey period. Age (OR = 6.9; p < 0.001), marital status (OR = 5.8; p < 0.001), teenage women living in the south-central region (OR = 1.057; p > 0.001), non-use of contraception (OR = 2.53; p < 0.001), and teenage women who knew contraceptive methods (OR = 2.86; p > 0.001) were all significantly associated with teenage pregnancy in Liberia.
Conclusion: Teenage pregnancy is common in Liberia. Lack of education, early marriages and cohabitation, contraceptive non-use, rural location, and early sexual initiation are all factors that contribute to teen pregnancies. To lower the high prevalence of adolescent pregnancy and its consequences, intervention measures promoting contraception use, preventing early sexual initiation, limiting early marriages, and creating family planning clinics, primarily in rural regions, are strongly recommended.

Keywords: Prevalence, Teenage, Pregnancy, Risk factors