By Joseph Odoi
In the remote villages of Eastern and Northern Uganda, a small medical device is doing far more than preventing unintended pregnancies, it appears to be quietly shifting the balance of power in women’s lives.
A new study titled “Is choosing self-injectable contraception associated with enhanced contraceptive agency? Findings from a 12-month cohort study in Uganda” has revealed that self-injection gives women more than just a health service, it can boost their confidence, control, and agency over their reproductive health.
The research was conducted by Makerere University namely; Professor Peter Waiswa, Catherine Birabwa, Ronald Wasswa, Dinah Amongin and Sharon Alum in collaboration with colleagues from the University of California, San Francisco
Why this Study matters for Uganda
For decades, family planning in Uganda has followed a provider-client model. Women travel long distances to clinics, wait in queues, and rely on health workers to administer contraception. This system creates barriers transport costs, clinic stock-outs, long waiting times, and limited privacy.
Self-injectable contraception, known as DMPA-SC, disrupts this model by shifting care from the clinic to the individual woman.
DMPA-SC is a discreet, easy-to-use injectable that women can administer themselves after receiving basic training and counselling.
What the Data Tells Us
To see if self-care technology actually shifts the needle on women’s power, researchers tracked 1,828 women across Eastern (Iganga and Mayuge Districts) and Northern Uganda (Kole, Lira, and Oyam Districts) for a full year. They compared women who chose to self-inject their birth control (216 women) against a control group, most of whom chose methods requiring dependency on clinics (1,612 women).
The Six-Month “Agency Spike”
The study used a Contraceptive Agency scale (scored from 0 to 3) to measure a woman’s internal confidence and her ability to act on her health choices.
The Self-Injectors
For the Self Injectors, their agency scores rose significantly, from 2.65 to 2.74 by the six-month mark.
The Clinic-Dependent Group
Scores for the group using mostly provider-led methods (like clinic shots or implants) remained nearly flat, moving from 2.61 to only 2.63.
Within just six months, women who took control of their own injections noted that they felt a measurable boost in their Consciousness of reproductive Rights (0.08 points) since they transitioned from being passive recipients of care to active decision-makers.
Using the Agency in Contraceptive Decisions Scale (scored 0–3), the study found a clear empowerment advantage for women who chose self-injection.
The findings come at a time when Uganda has reaffirmed its commitments under FP2030, aiming to expand access to voluntary, rights-based family planning. The study also aligns with the National Family Planning Costed Implementation Plan, which prioritises method choice, equity, and continuation, as well as national gender and youth empowerment strategies.
Can Uganda Sustain and Scale DMPA-SC?
Self-injectable contraception does not require continuous high-cost investment. Training and rollout costs are largely one-time, and the main recurring expense is the contraceptive commodity itself. Compared with the cumulative costs of repeated clinic visits for both the health system and women self-injection is more cost-effective over time.
Advancing primary health care with DMPA-SC
Beyond cost savings, self-injection eases pressure on health facilities and allows health workers to focus on more complex care. It also extends health services into communities, supporting continuity of care in areas where facilities are few and far between. In this way, family planning is no longer confined to the clinic.
While donor support has helped introduce the method, it can be sustained locally without relying on external funding. “With predictable national financing and reliable commodity supply chains, DMPA-SC can reach more women and be fully integrated into Uganda’s health system, strengthening both access and community-level service delivery’’ according to the researchers.
Implications for Policy and Practice
As Uganda continues to reform its primary health care system, the findings add evidence to ongoing discussions about how family planning services are delivered, financed, and prioritised.
The research also positions self-injectable contraception not as a temporary innovation, but as a scalable method with the potential to be embedded within national systems provided that commodity availability and financing are safeguarded.
To ensure these gains are lasting, researchers recommend moving beyond the technology and addressing the structural and social barriers that can limit women’s agency.
Key recommendations from the researchers include the following
1. Reliable Supply Chains
Empowerment collapses when products are unavailable. DMPA-SC must be consistently stocked at the community level.
2. Creating a Supportive Social Environment
Privacy concerns, stigma, and partner resistance must be tackled through community engagement and sensitisation.
3. Prioritizing Informed Choice
Self-injection should be offered as a top-tier option in every facility, framed as a fundamental right to autonomy rather than just a medical convenience.
4. Integrated Counseling
Providers must be trained to support women not only in the “how to inject” but also in navigating the social challenges of self-care.
On the next step, the researchers call for a clear integration of DMPA-SC into national health financing, protection of family planning commodity budgets, and deliberate scaling of self-injectable contraception within Primary Health Care reforms. These actions will ensure sustainability, reliable access, and greater control for women over their reproductive choices according to the researchers.
Read the full study here: https://www.contraceptionjournal.org/article/S0010-7824(26)00003-X/fulltext
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