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Women’s education, infant and child mortality, and fertility decline in urban and rural sub-Saharan Africa

Author

Listed:
  • David Shapiro

    (Pennsylvania State University)

  • Michel Tenikue

    (Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research (LISER))

Abstract

Background: This paper provides estimates of the contributions of increased women’s education and reduced infant and child mortality to fertility declines in urban and rural areas of countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, using individual-level data. Objective: The principal question that the paper addresses is: How much have increased women’s schooling and reduced mortality contributed to fertility declines in urban and rural places in each of 30 countries in sub-Saharan Africa? A secondary question is: What have been the changes in women’s schooling and mortality in urban and rural areas in these countries? Methods: Data from the first and last Demographic and Health Surveys for each country is used, along with a decomposition technique that allows us to quantify how much of the observed fertility decline is attributable to increased education and how much is due to reduced mortality. Results: In urban places, on average, increased women’s schooling accounts for 54% of observed fertility decline while reduced mortality contributes 30%. In rural areas with fertility decline, increased women’s education accounts for an average of 30% of the decline while reduced mortality accounts for an average of 35%. Results vary substantially by country and place of residence. Conclusions: Accelerating increases in women’s schooling and decreases in infant and child mortality have the potential to accelerate fertility decline in sub-Saharan Africa. Contribution: The paper uses individual-level data to provide quantitative estimates of the importance of increased women’s schooling and reduced mortality in contributing to fertility decline in sub-Saharan Africa.

Suggested Citation

  • David Shapiro & Michel Tenikue, 2017. "Women’s education, infant and child mortality, and fertility decline in urban and rural sub-Saharan Africa," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 37(21), pages 669-708.
    • Handle: RePEc:dem:demres:v:37:y:2017:i:21
    DOI: 10.4054/DemRes.2017.37.21
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. SHAPIRO David & TENIKUE Michel, 2015. "Women’s Education, Infant and Child Mortality, and Fertility Decline in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Quantitative Assessment," LISER Working Paper Series 2015-07, Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research (LISER).
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    10. David Shapiro & Tesfayi Gebreselassie, 2014. "Marriage in Sub-Saharan Africa: Trends, Determinants, and Consequences," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 33(2), pages 229-255, April.
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    Cited by:

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    3. Fatima Zahra & Nicole Haberland & Stephanie Psaki, 2022. "PROTOCOL: Causal mechanisms linking education with fertility, HIV, and child mortality: A systematic review," Campbell Systematic Reviews, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 18(2), June.
    4. Samuel Manda & Ndamonaonghenda Haushona & Robert Bergquist, 2020. "A Scoping Review of Spatial Analysis Approaches Using Health Survey Data in Sub-Saharan Africa," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(9), pages 1-20, April.
    5. Ashira Menashe-Oren & David A. Sánchez-Páez, 2023. "Male Fertility and Internal Migration in Rural and Urban Sub-Saharan Africa," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 39(1), pages 1-40, December.
    6. Perkiö, Mikko, 2021. "How does women’s education influence infant survival? A structural equation model using aggregate data from 95 low- and middle-income countries," International Journal of Educational Development, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
    7. Jet Wildeman & Jeroen Smits & Sandor Schrijner, 2023. "Ethnic Variation in Fertility Preferences in Sub-Saharan Africa," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 42(4), pages 1-23, August.
    8. David Shapiro & Andrew Hinde, 2020. "Laggards in the global fertility transition," Vienna Yearbook of Population Research, Vienna Institute of Demography (VID) of the Austrian Academy of Sciences in Vienna, vol. 18(1), pages 123-140.
    9. Jean-Claude Kouladoum, 2023. "Inclusive Education and Health Performance in Sub Saharan Africa," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 165(3), pages 879-900, February.
    10. Ben Malinga John, 2023. "Neglected forces of fertility variation in sub-Saharan Africa: the role of marital dissolution and repartnering," MPIDR Working Papers WP-2023-031, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    women's education; infant and child mortality; fertility decline; sub-Saharan Africa; decomposition analysis;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

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

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