Regional variations of contraceptive use in Bangladesh: A disaggregate analysis by place of residence

This study advances current knowledge on contraceptive use in Bangladesh by providing new insights into the extent of regional variations in contraceptive use across rural and urban areas of Bangladesh. We examined the regional variations in contraceptive use among 15,699 currently married women ages 15–49 years using data from the 2014 Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS). Multivariate logistic regression models of contraceptive use were calibrated with sociodemographic attributes and cultural factors. Based on the aggregate sample (i.e., rural and urban combined), we found significant regional variations in contraceptive use across the administrative divisions in Bangladesh. Based on a disaggregate sample (i.e., rural and urban separately), we found that there were significant differences in divisional variations in contraceptive use in rural areas. In contrast, no significant variation in contraceptive use across divisions in urban areas of Bangladesh was found. More specifically, among women living in rural areas, the Rajshahi and Rangpur divisions had higher odds of contraceptive use than the Barisal division, whereas the Chittagong and Sylhet divisions had much lower odds of contraceptive use even after adjusting for selected sociodemographic attributes and cultural factors. A separate analysis of the divisional variations in usage of modern methods of contraception also revealed similar findings with only one exception. Findings of this study provide an evidence-based direction for adapting a pragmatic approach to reducing the divisional disparity of contraceptive use in rural areas of Bangladesh.