Volume 13 - Article 4 | Pages 83–116  

Fertility decline in North-Central Namibia: An assessment of fertility in the period 1960-2000 based on parish registers

By Riikka Shemeikka, Veijo Notkola, Harri Siiskonen

Abstract

This study examines fertility decline in North-Central Namibia in the period 1960-2000. A Scandinavian-type parish-register system, established in the beginning of 20th Century and still in use, provided register-based data for fertility analysis. Fertility decline began in 1980, was rapid in the 1980s, levelled off in the early 1990s, started again in 1994 and continued until the year 2000. Fertility declined in every age group, except among the 15-19 year olds, whose fertility increased. Cohort fertility started to decline among the 1940-44 birth cohort. During the 1980s, fertility decline was associated with increasing age at first marriage and declining marital fertility, connected to e.g. the War of Independence. During the 1990s, an increase in both the use of contraceptives and HIV-prevalence contributed to the fertility decline.

Author's Affiliation

• Riikka Shemeikka - Helsingin Yliopisto (University of Helsinki), Finland EMAIL
• Veijo Notkola - Itä-Suomen Yliopisto (University of Eastern Finland), Finland EMAIL
• Harri Siiskonen - Itä-Suomen Yliopisto (University of Eastern Finland), Finland EMAIL

Most recent similar articles in Demographic Research

Using Respondent-Driven Sampling to measure abortion safety in restrictive contexts: Results from Kaya (Burkina Faso) and Nairobi (Kenya)
Volume 50 - Article 47    | Keywords: induced abortion, respondents-driven samples, social networks, sub-Saharan Africa

Predictive utility of key family planning indicators on dynamic contraceptive outcomes: Results from longitudinal surveys in Burkina Faso, Kenya, Uganda, and Côte d'Ivoire
Volume 50 - Article 45    | Keywords: contraception, contraceptive adoption, contraceptive discontinuation, contraceptive use, family planning, longitudinal data, methods, panel data, Performance and Monitoring for Action (PMA) surveys, sub-Saharan Africa

Religion and contraceptive use in Kazakhstan: A study of mediating mechanisms
Volume 50 - Article 21    | Keywords: contraceptive use, Generations and Gender Programme (GGP), Kazakhstan, mediation, religion, religiosity

Does the fulfillment of contraceptive method preferences affect contraceptive continuation? Evidence from urban Kenya, Nigeria, and Senegal
Volume 50 - Article 5    | Keywords: contraceptive discontinuation, contraceptive dynamics, contraceptive preferences, contraceptive use, family planning, patient-centered approach, preferences

Measuring the educational gradient of period fertility in 28 European countries: A new approach based on parity-specific fertility estimates
Volume 49 - Article 34    | Keywords: education, Europe, period fertility, quantum, tempo, total fertility rate (TFR)