Indicators of Trends in Fertility in Sub-Saharan Africa

Charles Westoff, Princeton University
Kristin Bietsch, Princeton University
Dawn Koffman, Princeton University

The main objective of this study is to evaluate the relative importance of the factors associated with the decline of fertility in sub-Saharan Africa. The analysis is based primarily on data from the Demographic and Health Surveys in 24 sub-Saharan countries that have conducted at least two surveys. The time interval between the last two surveys is most commonly five years. Most of the findings are based on the characteristics of women, but in 22 of the countries trends for men are also included. An analysis also summarizes findings for 20-year intervals for 12 countries with more than two surveys Average changes in all of these determinants are also included for 16 Asian and Latin American countries for comparative purposes. They show the direction that the sub-Saharan African countries are heading.