Exploring healthcare professionals’ experiences and opinions on male involvement in family planning in Lubombo, Eswatini: A qualitative study

Family planning enables individuals and couples to choose if and when to have children, limiting the health risks associated with early childbearing, close birth spacing and unwanted pregnancies. Male partners are increasingly seen as an opportunity to increase contraception use. As Eswatini, located in southern Africa, is a patriarchal society, increasing male involvement could improve the country's sexual and reproductive health. Twelve healthcare professionals were interviewed in Lubombo, eastern Eswatini, to further study this. Most participants felt male involvement in family planning was rare, but all supported it for reasons including more effective contraception use and better access to family planning services. Many barriers were mentioned, such as limited male responsibility in sexual health, fears of contraception, and dislike of health services. To overcome these, participants recommended education and male-only health services. This study adds an important healthcare professional perspective in a relatively little studied context.