Bekele Taye , Tsion Nurie
International Journal of Rural Development, Environment and Health Research(IJREH), Vol-1,Issue-1, May - June 2017, Pages 60-67,
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Background Sexual activity among adolescent has been reported to be on the increasing worldwide. Globally, puberty is occurring earlier for both boys and girls, and the age at which people marry is rising. These leave a widening gap of time during which young adults can potentially engaged in premarital sexual activity. Therefore this study was done to assess pre-marital sexual practices and associated factors among private college students in Bahir Dar city, Northwest Ethiopia. Method: An institution based cross-sectional study was employed in private college, Bahr Dar, North west Amhara, Ethiopia from July to December 2016. The sample size to each college was allocated using probability proportional to size (number of student) allocation, and study participants were selected by systematic sampling technique. A total of 402 students were included in the study. Pre-testing of the questionnaire was undertaken. Data was collected using a pre-tested structured questionnaire through self administration. Data entry and analyses were performed using SPSS statistical packages (version 20 for Windows). Bivariate and Multivariable analysis were computed. Result: : A total of 344 students took part in the survey. More than one fifth of survey respondents (23.3%) reported that they have had premarital sex. Multi--â€variate logistic regression analysis showed that male respondents were two times more likely to be have premarital sexual intercourse as compared to female respondents (AOR: 2.3,95% CI:1.4-4.1). Students who watch video, movies or other entertainment programs were more than five times more likely to start pre-marital sexual debut than those not watching video, movies or other entertainment programs (AOR: 5.5, 95%CI: 2.7-11.2).similarly work to earn money was found to be positively associated with premarital sex in this study (AOR: 3.2, 95% CI:1.8-5.7). Conclusion and recommendation: A significant number of students had started pre marital sexual activity that might predispose them to varied sexual and reproductive health problems. Hence, sex education & targeted behavioural change interventions are recommended.