ENABLING INFORMED DECISIONS:
THE JOURNEY OF YESUF AND ASIYA WITH SMART START FAMILY CIRCLE IN THE AFAR REGION.
Author: Yonatan Tamiru, Communication and PR Specialist, PSI Ethiopia and Fana Abay, Marketing and Communications Director, PSI Ethiopia
In the Afar region of Ethiopia, the tradition of starting a family immediately after marriage and prioritizing parenthood over personal ambitions is deeply rooted in the culture. Yet amidst this traditional backdrop, Yesuf and Asiya, a determined couple, are charting their path. They live in Afambo woreda, Humadoyta kebele, where the Roadmap to Integrating Smart Start in Ethiopia (RISE) program is making waves by challenging long-standing norms and changing the lives of young married couples. Through the RISE program, health workers from their woreda support Yesuf and Asiya to challenge conventional views about family planning and reproductive health.
Yesuf, a twenty-year-old day laborer, dreams of becoming a successful entrepreneur one day. His wife, Asiya, a 19-year-old 12th-grade student, wants to finish school and become a professional woman. However, their families and communities wanted them to start a family and prioritize parenthood.
Luckily, right after their wedding, the newlyweds met with Asia Nur, the RISE program’s Smart Start Navigator, who routinely goes door-to-door to offer health advice. Asia Nur spoke to the couple about the value of family planning. She invited them to the health center to attend a Smart Start Family Circle session with other married girls and couples. Yesuf admits that he was initially hesitant to discuss such topics with a stranger. He said, “I was afraid because of the rumors and misconceptions I had heard about family planning. But thanks to Asia Nur, I gradually agreed to go to the health center with my wife.”
The couple attended the Smart Start Family Circle session and received valuable information on family planning and the benefits of modern contraceptives that would help them delay until they are ready to start a family. But, breaking away from traditional norms was not without its challenges. Yesuf and Asiya faced an even greater challenge when they told their families about their decision to use modern contraceptives. Their families showered the young couple with disapproving looks, expressions of displeasure, and unsolicited advice such as, “Children are a gift from Allah, and not wanting a child after marriage is like rejecting His blessings.” The pressure to start a family mounted, but they both remained steadfast in their decision.
Asia Nur’s unwavering support was necessary for the young couple to find comfort and strength. She helped them cope with conflicting feelings caused by societal norms and family expectations. Asia Nur recalls, “I met Yesuf and Asiya at the right moment. They were wrestling between their personal goals and family and societal pressures to have children right after marriage. I invited them to Family Circle sessions, where they received in-depth counseling on family planning and safe ways to delay until they were ready.”
Eventually, Yesuf and Asiya succeeded in convincing their families of the benefits and positive effects of family planning for young couples who had just begun to build lives and livelihoods. It was also helpful that the RISE program relied on the community’s traditional influencers and religious leaders to ease concerns and change social norms about family planning and modern contraceptives.
Amina Aden, who has been working as a Health Extension Worker for seven years, explains how the RISE program’s community-wide approach overcame community resistance to family planning and contraceptives in the Afar region. She explains, “The program’s inclusive approach, involving religious and clan leaders and traditional birth attendants, has sparked positive change. The program has reached people beyond its intended scope by using the traditional communication system of the Afar region, known as Dagu.” Dagu is the largest “wireless” traditional news network in Afar that relies on word of mouth. After receiving advice from Woreda health workers, couples and community influencers become conduits of valuable information that spreads throughout their community. In this way, they create awareness of and demand for sexual reproductive health and family planning beyond the program’s 15–19 age limit set by the program. Integrating this traditional method of communication and community influencer has proven helpful in changing social norms and spreading the message of family planning and reproductive health.
The story of Yesuf and Asiya illustrates the importance of tailored counseling by health workers and community support to accept family planning in a community where sociocultural barriers deeply rooted. By combining individual counseling, community engagement, and traditional communication methods, the RISE program promotes a shift in attitudes about sexual and reproductive health and family planning. It also enables young married couples like Yesuf and Asiya to gain control and make informed decisions about their futures.
