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Forty years of fertility changes in the Sahel

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  • Thomas Spoorenberg

    (United Nations)

Abstract

Background: Despite much discussion on the fertility changes in sub-Saharan Africa, the countries of the Sahel have received only limited attention. Their comparatively high and stable fertility levels contributed them being labeled as an exception in sub-Saharan Africa. Objective: This study investigates whether countries of the Sahel are an exception in the crosscontinental trend of increasing birth intervals since the 1970s in sub-Saharan Africa. Methods: Using birth history data, the levels and trends in parity progression ratios and birth intervals are reconstructed for four decades in four countries of the Sahel (Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, and Niger). Results: In all four countries, parity progression ratios have changed little, but births have been occurring later and the age at which an average woman is bearing her seventh child has increased. Conclusions: While the lengthening of birth intervals has been associated with lower fertility in many analyses, this study shows that a similar process is found in countries with high and stable total fertility rates. Contribution: This study contributes to revise some commonly accepted views on the fertility dynamics in the Sahel.

Suggested Citation

  • Thomas Spoorenberg, 2019. "Forty years of fertility changes in the Sahel," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 41(46), pages 1289-1314.
    • Handle: RePEc:dem:demres:v:41:y:2019:i:46
    DOI: 10.4054/DemRes.2019.41.46
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Thomas Spoorenberg & Hamidou Issaka Maga, 2018. "Fertility compression in Niger: A study of fertility change by parity (1977–2011)," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 39(24), pages 685-700.
    3. Catriona Towriss & Ian Timæus, 2018. "Contraceptive use and lengthening birth intervals in rural and urban Eastern Africa," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 38(64), pages 2027-2052.
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    Cited by:

    1. Torrisi, Orsola, 2024. "Violent instability and modern contraception: Evidence from Mali," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 177(C).
    2. Ann Garbett & Brienna Perelli‐Harris & Sarah Neal, 2021. "The Untold Story of 50 Years of Adolescent Fertility in West Africa: A Cohort Perspective on the Quantum, Timing, and Spacing of Adolescent Childbearing," Population and Development Review, The Population Council, Inc., vol. 47(1), pages 7-40, March.
    3. Mathias Lerch & Thomas Spoorenberg, 2020. "The emergence of birth limitation as a new stage in the fertility transition in sub-Saharan Africa," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 42(30), pages 827-858.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    fertility; parity progression ratios; birth interval; Sahel; fertility transition;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J1 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics
    • Z0 - Other Special Topics - - General

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