SOCIO-DEMOGRAPHIC FACTORS, AGENTS OF MODERNITY, EMPLOYMENT STATUS & FERTILITY BEHAVIOR OF WOMEN IN MARITAL UNION IN SOUTH-WEST REGION OF NIGERIA

 

Muyiwa Oladosun¹, Tayo George², Taiwo Abioye³, Dorcas Adekoya⁴

¹Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State, Nigeria <fso8260@gmail.com>

²Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State, Nigeria, <tayo.george@covenantuniversity.edu.ng>

³Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State, Nigeria, <taiwo.abioye@covenantuniversity.edu.ng>

 ⁴Independent Consultant, <yemidunni@gmail.com>

 

Abstract

This paper examines key factors influencing fertility behavior of women in marital union in the south-west region of Nigeria with a view to reducing fertility in this region of the country. The key dependent variables are (1) preference for another child, and (2) number of living children. A total of 3784 women aged 15-49 in marital union were extracted from the 2013 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) nationally representative data. Results showed that the odds of non-preference for another child increased significantly by 2.23 times (P-value = .000) per unit increase in respondent’s age, and varied significantly by state of residence. The odds of non-preference for another child significantly increased 1.05 times per unit increase (P-value = .000) in husband’s age, and it increased by 1.37 times (P-value = .024) for respondents who had cable TV compared to those who do not have. The odds of non-preference for another child decreased to .37 times (P-value = .046) for respondents working compared to those not working, and it increased 21.34 times (P-value = .017) for respondents who earned only cash for work compared those not working. On number of living children, the odds of having at most two children decreased to .45 times (P-value = .000) with each unit increase in respondent’s age, it increased 2.9 times (P-value = .000) for respondents with higher education compared to the uneducated reference category. The odds of having at most two children increased 2.01 times (P-value = .035) for the richest wealth status compared to the poorest/poorer, decreased significantly to .97 times (P-value = .000) for each unit increase in husband’s age. The odds of having at most two children decreased significantly to .56 times (P-value = .008) for respondents with primary school education compared to the uneducated, and it decreased significantly to .48 times (P-value = .001) for respondents who had TV compared to those who do not have. Policies and programming need to factor these findings into strategies and actions that can lead to further reduction in the current high fertility in the region.

Keywords: Socio-Demographic, Agents of Modernity, Employment Status, Fertility Behavior, Fertility Preference, Number of Living Children, Marital Union