Comparative Community-based cross sectional study conducted in Gambella Town ofrnGambella Regional State, which is 777 kms away from Addis Ababa to the South westrnof the country. The study populations were women of reproductive age group residingrnin the urban area of Gambella woreda during the study period. Multistage samplingrnprocedure was carried out to reach at the 936 households to be included in the survey.rnSimple random sampling technique was applied to select the respondent women whenrnmore than one women of reproductive age group resides in the same household. Datarnwas collected using pre-tested structured questionnaire complemented by focus grouprndiscussion.rnThe finding of the study revealed that there is statistically significant differencernbetween indigenous and non-indigenous study groups by educational status, number ofrnco-wives, intended number of children and length of postpartum sexual abstinence.rnNinety six percent of the non-indigenous women and sixty two percent of thernindigenous women have heard about modern contraceptive methods. The mostrncommonly known contraceptive methods were oral pills and injectables. More thanrn50.0% of the non-indigenous women were used modern contraceptive methods in theirrnlifetime while only 20.2% of the indigenous have ever tried.rnCurrent contraceptive prevalence was 11.5% among indigenous study women while itrnwas 36.4% among non- indigenous group. Desire for more children and use of naturalrnmethod like prolonged postpartum sexual abstinence were the reasons for non usernamong indigenous women while desire for more children and not currently engaged inrnviiirnwedlock were the most commonly reported reasons for non-use of modernrncontraceptive methods for non-indigenous women whilernIt was found that the tradition of indigenous population enforces male partners tornobserve for prolonged postpartum sexual abstinence and their culture allows them tornhave multiple wives. More over, it was noted in the qualitative finding that once arnwomen is engaged in wedlock it is must that she has to produce as many children asrnpossible because children particularly daughters were assumed to be the source ofrnfamily income and women can not make any decision related to reproductive mattersrnwhich consequently influenced their modern contraceptive utilization.rnThe result of multivariate analysis showed statistically significant association betweenrnage, marital status, number of co-wive, previous attendance of PNC previous healthrninstitution delivery, and modern contraceptive utilization. Women empowerment throughrneducation and looking for alternative sources of family planning delivery system andrninvolving male partner in reproductive health issues were recommended