Introduction: Global progress in achieving universal access to sexual and reproductive healthcare services is contingent on progress in countries where the use of modern contraceptive methods is still low among women who want to avoid pregnancy in subSaharan Africa. A rise in the proportion of women of reproductive age having their need for family planning satisfied with modern methods will facilitate the achievement of other Sustainable Development Goals and lower maternal and under-5 mortality. This study aimed at determining the trend in the uptake of modern contraceptives among women of reproductive age in the Buea Health District in Cameroon.

Methodology: A retrospective descriptive study was carried out to determine the uptake of family planning among women of reproductive age in the Buea Health District. Data was collected from 7 health facilities selected through a randomized sampling method from the Buea Health District. Monthly report sent to the district and the regional delegation were reviewed for a period of 4 years (2018 to 2021). Data was analyzed in the SPSS version 28.0. Results: . A total of 336 monthly reports were triangulated with the DHS,2021 database at the regional delegation of health southwest region. The overall prevalence of contraceptive use in the Buea Health District was 24.3 %. It varied from 4.4 % in Integrated Health Center Buea Town to 46% in Solidarity clinic and Integrated health center Molyko ,each health facility selected from the health areas. There was a drop in the number of new clients at the family planning unit, as well as the number of women using natural contraceptive methods from 2018 to 2021. The injectable (22%) , Pills (20%), Male condoms (11) and implants (10 %), were the most employed methods of contraceptives with a decreasing uptake from 2018 to 2020. The least used were the surgical methods and female condoms.

Conclusion: The uptake of contraceptives among reproductive-aged women showed a decreasing trend from 2018 to 2021 with an overall low uptake. The injectables and pills are the preferred methods. There is a need for the population to be educated on information about each contraceptive methods to improve the uptake of contraceptive use by women of reproductive age group in the Buea Health District.