Socio-Economic Factors Influencing Antenatal Care Utilization in Zaria Local Government Area Kaduna State, Nigeria

Abstract

Antenatal care is a global strategy instituted to encourage adequate utilisation of healthcare services by women of reproductive age and particularly to reduce maternal mortality affecting the world. This paper examines the socio-economic factors influencing antenatal care utilization in Zaria Local Government Area Kaduna State, Nigeria. This study was anchored on Liberal Feminist
theory to provide a theoretical explanation for the topic under investigation. Data for this study were obtained through the administration of questionnaire to respondents purposively selected in the study area. A total of 384 women were selected using the systematic and simple random sampling technique. Data were analysed using descriptive statistical techniques. Findings of this study reveal that the highest educational attainment of the respondents was secondary school with (38.1%) and respondent’s husband with tertiary was (43.5%). A large proportion (52.4%) of the respondents are into business/trading, while 53.2% of the respondent’s husbands are civil servant and 68.0% of the respondents get support financially from their husbands. Maternal mortality is common in areas where women are educationally disadvantaged and are not well informed about issues that concern
their health as priority should be given to girl-child education, sustainable poverty alleviation programmes through income generating activities should be optimized.