DHS in the News

Journalists worldwide write about The DHS Program results. The dissemination of DHS, SPA and HIV data is often widely covered by media in survey countries, but journalists also use The DHS Program data throughout the year as background information for their stories, or to compare health and development indicators across countries. These data are also used by journalists in the United States and other developed countries, as it is considered the gold standard of population, health and nutrition data. Below are some examples of recent news coverage. Please note: The links below are to websites outside The DHS Program.

Jan 13, 2021
Breaking the silence that led to a high teenage pregnancy rate in a Kenyan county

UNPA (Kilifi County, Kenya)

"...A lack of knowledge about sexual health and family planning pervades Kilifi County’s conservative culture. The silence has led to one of the highest teen pregnancy rates in Kenya, at 22 per cent, compared to the national average of 18 per cent, according to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey (KDHS, 2014)..."

https://esaro.unfpa.org/en/news/breaking-silence-led-high-teenage-pregnancy-rate-kenyan-county
Jan 11, 2021
African countries differ widely in prenatal HIV testing: why it matters

Anthony Idowu Ajayi, Bright Opoku Ahinkorah, Abdul-Aziz Seidu, Oluwafemi Awopegba, and Amarachi Kalu
THE CONVERSATION (Nairobi, Kenya)

"...We analysed the Demographic and Health Survey data of 64,933 women from 16 sub-Saharan African countries. From central Africa, we included Angola, Cameroon and Chad. Benin, Guinea, Mali and Senegal represented west Africa. Burundi, Ethiopia, Rwanda and Uganda were included from east Africa. Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe represented southern Africa [...] Our research focused on whether mothers were tested for HIV as part of antenatal care. We also included individual characteristics like age, marital status, education, wealth and knowledge of HIV transmission in our statistical analysis..."

https://theconversation.com/african-countries-differ-widely-in-prenatal-hiv-testing-why-it-matters-151855
Jan 11, 2021
Outlook 2021 Tajikistan

BNE INTELLINEWS (Berlin, Germany)

"...According to the 2017 Demographic and Health Survey conducted by the Tajik government together with international partners, 18% of the country’s children under five suffer from stunted growth because of malnutrition. Less than 10% of children between six and 23 months have minimum acceptable dietary standards, the same findings also showed..."

https://www.intellinews.com/outlook-2021-tajikistan-199335/
Jan 08, 2021
Buhari assents Disability Bill, inaugurates National Commission for Persons with Disabilities

William Ukpe
NAIRAMETRICS (Lagos, Nigeria)

"...Data from the 2018 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey revealed that an estimated 7% of household members above the age of five (as well as 9% of those 60 or older) experience some level of difficulty in at least one functional domain — seeing, hearing, communication, cognition, walking, or self-care..."

https://nairametrics.com/2021/01/08/buhari-assents-disability-bill-inaugurates-national-commission-for-persons-with-disabilities/
Jan 08, 2021
Bill gives refuge to Nairobi gender violence victims

Collins Omulo
BUSINESS DAILY (Nairobi, Kenya)

"...The Kenya Demographic and Health Survey of 2014 found that 45 percent of women and girls aged 15 and above had experienced physical violence and 14 percent subjected to sexual violence..."

https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/bd/data-hub/bill-gives-refuge-to-nairobi-gender-violence-victims-3250380