Maternal health and family planning are major health concerns in Benin. Due to the nature of sexual interactions between men and women for the purpose of reproduction, as well as the centralized focus on women regarding the topic of maternal health, the feminist anthropological approach would be best utilized in this discussion. Feminist anthropology as a theoretical perspective focuses on inequality due specifically to gender, and is characterized by questions such as, “Is someone being treated different because of their gender?”, or, “…is someone being treated in a way that creates economic, political, other social inequalities [tied to gender]?” (Department of Anthropology 2019). Similar to critical medical anthropology, which examines influence/authority structures and economic, political, and social power inequalities, the feminist approach zeros in on the power struggles concerning the binary opposition of men and women (however problematic as this dichotomy is today); holistically, it analyzes how individuals benefit or suffer because of their gender or the gender norms and roles within one’s culture (Department of Anthropology 2019). Further, the University of Alabama cites the subordination of women, universal binary opposition, and the domestic power of women as principle concepts associated with the feminist anthropological theory (Johnna Dominguez n.d.).

 While Benin’s low rate of contraceptive use is also affected by Western influence, socioeconomic disadvantages, and geographic restrictions (i.e. critical medical anthropology), Beninese women are targeted with adverse health outcomes and poor opportunities for family planning by a myriad of gendered policies, structures, and cultural norms that restrict their power and protection. In Benin, girls and women receive much less schooling than their male counterparts; comparatively, 54.9% of males and only 30.8% of females ages 15-24 years old are able to read and write, and the stated enrolment ratios for females as a percentage of males for primary schooling is 87.5%, and it decreases to 60.2% for secondary schooling (UNESCO 2000). From a feminist anthropological perspective, this gender-skewed lack of education both directly and indirectly acts as an obstacle for women to learn more about contraception, the medical options available to them, and formal sex education as a whole. In addition, laws that prohibit legal abortions and that fail to penalize/prosecute perpetrators of sexual assault, rape, and abuse restrict women and leave their bodies unprotected from trauma that can have reproductive and maternal health consequences. Cultural traditions of male dominance and social inequalities based on gender further complicate family planning, making it taboo to speak about or use contraceptive devices without male consent and normalizing the victimization of women through intimate partner violence. This removes decision-making power from the hands of Beninese women and places it instead with their husbands and boyfriends. The domestic roles and expectations of Beninese women also block their adequate access to contraceptive devices and maternal health, which require them to stay home and care for the children (rather than seek out medical care, family planning instruction, or legal intervention). By analyzing the issues of family planning and maternal health from a feminist perspective, we are shifting the focus from the lack of contraceptive use as a result of socioeconomic, geographic, etc. factors, to one that highlights the suffering, victimization, and restriction of women (as opposed to men) and women’s agency in family planning matters.

References

Department of Anthropology. 2019. “Introducing Theory 5: Feminist Theory.” Michigan State University. Accessed August 2, 2019. https://anthropology.msu.edu/anp270-us19/lecture-videos/feminist-theory/.

Johnna Dominguez, Marsha Franks, and James H Boschma, III. n.d. “Feminist Anthropology.” Anthropological Theory Database. Accessed August 2, 2019. https://anthropology.ua.edu/theory/feminist-anthropology/.

UNESCO. 2000. Education for All 2000. Global Education Monitoring Report.