| dc.description.abstract | Background: Women with disabilities experience several dimensions of marginalization based on gender, disability and sometimes wealth status. Pre-marital sexual debut has serious immediate and long-term consequences to females with disabilities in the contexts where the practice is widely condemned. This study examined factors influencing premarital sex among women with disabilities in Uganda. Methods: The study, based on data from the 2016 Uganda Demographic and Health Survey (UDHS), analyzed 124 weighted cases of women with disabilities who have never been union. Frequency tables, chi-squared tests and binary logistic regression were used to analyze the data and examine factors influencing premarital sex among women with disabilities in Uganda. Results: The overall prevalence of premarital sex among women with disabilities in Uganda was 41%. The determinants of premarital sex among women with disabilities were wealth status, ever tested for HIV and occupation. The odds of premarital sex were higher among women of rich wealth index compared to women of poor wealth index (OR=3.58; 95% CI: 1.13-11.29, p=0.030). Compared to women that were not working or engaged in domestic work, the odds of premarital sex were higher among women in agriculture and manual work (OR=2.50; 95% CI: 1.05-5.95, p=0.038). Likewise, the odds of premarital sex were higher among women who had ever tested for HIV (OR=3.99; 95% CI: 1.53-10.41, p=0.005). Conclusion: The study ascertained that the prevalence of premarital sex among women with disabilities is high. Therefore, new strategies should focus on women with disabilities by increasing their autonomy to refuse sex by improving their socioeconomic status. | en_US |
