Fertility transitions in sub-Saharan Africa

: A general review and a case study on desired fertility in the DRC

Abstract

As fertility rates have decreased to a low and constant level almost everywhere on Earth, it is not the case for many countries in SSA. In particular, the fertility transition is observed to be much slower in SSA. In order to study why this transition is slower in SSA compared to the rest of the world, a literature review is provided first. Then, the situation in one specific country, i.e. the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), is investigated in more detail. Using data from the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) Program 2013-14, a descriptive analysis about fertility in the DRC is carried out. In particular, it focuses on the ideal family size (IFS). The case study about the DRC shows that fertility preferences are lower for women compared to men. The heterogeneity in those preferences is also larger among men. In general, women having lower fertility preferences are coupled with men having lower fertility preferences. The same is true for women and men having higher fertility preferences. Other results show that fertility preferences decrease for higher levels of education and wealth. The opposite effect is found for age. Religion and the type of residence also have a significant effect on fertility preferences. After controlling for other determinants, the regression analysis shows that the effect of wealth on fertility preferences is rather weak. On the other hand, education and age appear to be important determinants of the ideal number of children. As fertility preferences are an important determinant of actual fertility rates, policy makers should focus on reducing the IFS. Next, contraceptive methods could help achieving the desired fertility through avoiding unwanted pregnancies. Increasing women’s empowerment also plays a key role in reducing fertility. Because of the higher costs of having children, women tend to prefer having less children compared to men. When a woman has more bargaining power within the household, the final decision of the household will correspond more to her preferences.

Date of Award	15 Sept 2022
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	University of Namur
Supervisor	Catherine Guirkinger (Supervisor)