Good antenatal care (ANC) is one of the most important health care aspects known to reduce maternal mortality. In Ethiopia, regional and national data at times do not concur thus data from district to district level decision making are needed. The aim of this study was, therefore, to assess the prevalence and correlates of ANC service utilization. A community based cross-sectional study was conducted among pregnant women. Multistage sampling was used. Pre-tested structured questionnaire was data collection tool. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 16.0 for windows. Logistic regression was used to assess possible association among variables. Odds ratio at 95% confidence interval was used to measure strength, and statistical significance of associations. Prevalence of ANC service utilization was 57%. Of these, more than 80% of them received ANC for ≥4 times. This finding is more similar to the regional report (68%) than that of EDHS (2011) for Amhara Region (34%). Marital status, educational status and income were important predictors for ANC service utilization. The most outstanding finding of this study was that more than 20% and 60% of mothers received antennal care, and information about antenatal care from health extension workers. Antenatal care utilization is still low. Single, divorced, or separated mothers were less likely to utilize ANC while economically better off, and literate mothers were more likely to use ANC services than their counterparts. The finding of this study is in line with the annual reports from the Regional health bureau and disagrees with Ethiopian demographic health survey-EDHS-(2011). Therefore, districts should be encouraged to make decisions based on their own locally generated data than based on EDHS data which could at times be discouraging for districts with better performance. Further strengthening of Health Extension Program is recommended.

Cognizant of multifaceted challenge of unwanted pregnancy, Ethiopia strives to increase utilization of modern family planning across the nation. Therefore, update on the current status of family planning utilization especially in hard to reach ethnic minorities is critical. The objective of this study was to assess level, and correlates of modern contraceptive utilization in a hard to reach ethnic minorities. A community based study was conducted in Dangur District, Beneshangul Gumuz Regional State July, 2013. A total of 530 married women were included in the study. Structured questionnaire was data collection tool. Data was analysed using SPSS version 20 for windows. Possible association and their strength were measured using odds ratio at 95% CI. Family planning utilization was 18.7% while nearly 27% of study participants had ever used family planning methods. The following variables were predictors of family planning utilization: number of alive children [AOR: 3.31, 95% CI (1.41-7.20)], good knowledge [AOR: 2.18, 95% CI (1.35-3.52)] and positive attitude [AOR: 1.58, 95% CI (1.03-2.50)]. The most outstanding finding of this study was that more than 80% of study participants still believe that many children means high income, and nearly 60% of them believe that family planning utilization decreases confidence among couples. This study witnessed how successful Ethiopia is in addressing reproductive health service inequalities in hard to reach communities. However, misconceptions surrounding family planning, and culture associated desire to have large family size should be addressed in a culture sensitive manner so that this success would further bear fruits.