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Traditional supports and contemporary disruptors of high fertility desires in sub-Saharan Africa: A scoping review

Anna Church, Ohio State University
Shibani Chettri, Ohio State University
Mobolaji Ibitoye, The Ohio State University
John B. Casterline, Ohio State University

Sub-Saharan African countries have the highest fertility rates in the world. Contrary to sociodemographic theory, high demand for children persists in the context of relatively strong economic growth and greater female schooling in the region. The goal of the current scoping review was to synthesize the contemporary evidence from sub-Saharan Africa on the determinants of fertility desires and the role of modern contraception in implementing such desires. Using the Arskey and O’Malley framework, we conducted a scoping review of the social science, demographic, and health literature on fertility desires from 1990 to the present. We searched 18 databases using keywords pertaining to the concepts: fertility desires, men and women of reproductive age, and Sub-Saharan Africa. The searches yielded 9863 unique citations, 241 of which met all inclusion criteria. Most studies were conducted in Nigeria, Ghana, Ethiopia, and Kenya. Education, cost of raising children, and parity were implicated in decreasing desired number of children. On the other hand, polygyny, age, religion, and socioeconomic status were implicated in increasing the desired number of children. The implementation of fertility desires via contraception was highly nuanced, with gender dynamics greatly influencing modern contraception use. We will discuss research and programmatic implications of the findings.

Keywords: Fertility and childbirth, Family planning and contraception

See paper.

  Presented in Session 89. Health and Fertility