Determinants of High Fertility Rate among Married Women in Ethiopia

Abstract

Background: Fertility is one the major components of changing the population size and structure over time. Hence, this study aims to identify the socioeconomic and demographic factors associated with the high fertility rate among married women in Ethiopia Method: Ethiopian demography and health survey of 2016 data were accessed and used for the analysis. A total of 9602 married women were included in the study. Poisson regression models were employed by considering the number of children ever born (count) as a response variable. Results: A total of 9602 married women were included and 907 (9.4%) of the mothers have not born a child in their life time and only 307 (3.2%) of them have born more than 9 children. Rich women (IRR =0.794; 95%CI: 0.685, 0.920, secondary and above education of women (IRR =0.602; 95%CI: 0.570, 0.635), secondary and above education level of husbands’ (IRR =0.917; 95%CI: 0.880, 0.955) and late marriage (IRR =0.853; 95%CI: 0.832, 0.873) were found significantly associated with low level of fertility rate. Small family size (IRR =2.23.; 95%CI: 2.168, 2.294) and being child death experience (IRR =1.636; 95%CI: 1.601, 1.672) were also showed statistically significant association with high level of fertility rate. Conclusion: The government should focus on providing better access to education, increasing the coverage of family planning service and improving sources of income. Furthermore, the society should be made aware on consequences of high fertility on the child and maternal health, household economy, human capital investment and environmental degradation.

Examining the Effect of Urban Household Food Insecurity on Fertility in Lideta Sub-City, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

“…However, in this study, the level of education was not found to be statistically significant in predicting the effect of the number of children ever born. This finding was in line with prior studies (Adhikari, 2010;Azmoude et al, 2017) but in contrast with studies (Aragaw et al, 2023;Atsbaha et al, 2016;Mekonnen & Worku, 2011b;Muche & Gebremichael, 2020;Rutaremwa et al, 2015). Although educated women are usually more aware of family planning methods and the advantages and disadvantages of having children, they should have more autonomy and power in making reproductive decisions, so that they experience a lower fertility rate.…”

Examining the Effect of Urban Household Food Insecurity on Fertility in Lideta Sub-City, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…Other factors being equal, the difference in the rate of children ever born for contraceptive users is 0.641 times lower than for non-users. This finding was consistent with some studies [48,56,57,60,63] but in contrast with [55,58]. The rationale behind the decline in fertility rates can be attributed to the crucial role played by contraception in promoting healthy timing and spacing of pregnancies.…”

“…However, in this study, the level of education was not found to be statistically significant in predicting the number of children ever born. This finding was in line with prior studies [56,59] but in contrast with studies [49,55,57,60,61]. Although educated women are usually more aware of family planning methods and the advantages and disadvantages of having children, they should have more autonomy and power in making reproductive decisions, so that they experience a lower fertility rate.…”

“…Holding other factors constant, the number of children ever born is higher when women have a history related to child mortality. This finding corroborates studies [48,56,57,60,63] but opposes the findings of studies [55,58]. The aforementioned phenomenon may be explicable by the fact that women who have experienced child mortality have the desire to replenish their children.…”

“…This study has further revealed that employment status was not found to be a significant predictor in determining the number of children ever born. This finding corroborates studies [56,58,60] but contradicts the findings of previous studies [60,62]. This fact might be elucidated by the observation that a significant proportion of women are employed in the informal sector, which is characterized by relatively low impacts on fertility.…”