Reasons for the Fertility Decline in Ethiopia
Demographic pressure on the highlands has led
to a worsening of living conditions, thus reducing
economic opportunities. Due to this Ethiopian
couple downsized their fertility as well as use
contraception to reduce their family size, as to
be able to give the children that they did have a
better quality of life.
Traditional regimes that usually favoured high
fertility are also being destabilised by economic
changes at the household level and new
externally driven obligations such as mass
schooling and paid employment.
Parents also started to realise that more
offspring would cost more money and would
likely have less opportunities. They might also reverse wealth flow between generations by
costing more money than they would generate.
More Ethiopian children are also going to school, thus more are migrating to cities and
gaining paid employment.
The influence of media and communication also plays big part in educating people.
More and more Ethiopian women are now attending school as well as seeking work outside
of the home.
Even uneducated women benefit from educated women, they can spread the word about
family planning and help give them contraception.
There have also been massive improvements in health which have reduced fertility death
and therefore people don’t need to worry as much about their children dying. The
government of Ethiopia has also made abortion legal now which will in turn slightly reduce
birth rates.
Demographic pressure on the highlands has led
to a worsening of living conditions, thus reducing
economic opportunities. Due to this Ethiopian
couple downsized their fertility as well as use
contraception to reduce their family size, as to
be able to give the children that they did have a
better quality of life.
Traditional regimes that usually favoured high
fertility are also being destabilised by economic
changes at the household level and new
externally driven obligations such as mass
schooling and paid employment.
Parents also started to realise that more
offspring would cost more money and would
likely have less opportunities. They might also reverse wealth flow between generations by
costing more money than they would generate.
More Ethiopian children are also going to school, thus more are migrating to cities and
gaining paid employment.
The influence of media and communication also plays big part in educating people.
More and more Ethiopian women are now attending school as well as seeking work outside
of the home.
Even uneducated women benefit from educated women, they can spread the word about
family planning and help give them contraception.
There have also been massive improvements in health which have reduced fertility death
and therefore people don’t need to worry as much about their children dying. The
government of Ethiopia has also made abortion legal now which will in turn slightly reduce
birth rates.
