A Comparison of Fertility Rates Between China and Niger The purpose of this report is to compare the birth rates of two contrasting countries; one with the highest current fertility rates (Niger), and a country known for its dramatic fertility decline, which put it amongst the lowest fertility rates in the world (China). Flags of China and Niger ‘Total fertility rate’ is the measurement most widely used by demographers to measure fertility (Jones, 2004: 98). It indicates the average number of children that would be born to 1,000 women of childbearing age.
China’s current birth rate stands at 1.54 children per woman (CIA World Fact Book, 2011), and is currently 188th out of 230 countries on the CIA’s Total Fertility Rate List (2011). There are cities/ provinces within China such as Hong Kong and Macau that have the current lowest fertility rates in the world at 1.04 and 0.91 children per woman respectively. China’s current population stands at 1.3 billion, but their population growth rate of 0.493%, is amongst the lowest in the world. There are currently only 12.
29 births per 1,000 women. China’s fertility rate of below 2 children therefore indicates that its population is falling below replacement level. According to the CIA World Fact Book (2011), Niger’s birth rate stands at 7.6 children per woman, which makes it the country with the highest birth rate in the world. Its current fertility rate is 50.54 births per 1,000 of the total population. Niger’s current population stands at 16.5 million, with an annual 3.643% population growth rate. 49.6% of Niger’s total population is below the age of 14.
There are a variety of socio-cultural, economic and demographic reasons why there is such a dramatic variation between China’s and Niger’s population. China’s low fertility rate is due to its ‘One Child Policy’ which was introduced in 1979 by the People’s Republic of China’ (Rosenberg, 2011). It was initially designed as a temporary measure to slow population growth at the start of the Chinese economic reforms (Feng, 2005). This was because China’s population had almost doubled from 563 million in 1950, to one billion by 1980 (Rosenberg, 2010).
There was a lot of stress on China’s resources, and in order for it to develop a strong economic foundation, the population had to be cut. Financial incentives and fines were implemented by the government to ensure its citizens stuck to only having one child. There have also been reported cases of forced sterilisation and abortions. The policy has resulted in 90% of urban and 60% of rural children having no siblings (Chen, 2000). In Niger, high fertility rates can be caused by the early age at which women marry because women who marry at an earlier age are exposed to a longer period of becoming pregnant (Jones, 2004).
Women’s low status within Nigerien society all contributes to higher fertility because they have to obey their husbands. There is also a status symbol attached to the number of children a woman has in Nigerien society, so the more she has, the more respect and authority she has in her community. There is also a cultural preference for sons, so women may have many children in order to bare boy babies. Niger also experiences the 3rd highest infant mortality rates in the world (CIA World Fact Book, 2011).
Current infant mortality is 112.22 deaths per 1,000 live births. Caldwell (1968) believes that this leads to a higher overall fertility rate because parents foresee that all their children won’t survive to become adults. It is therefore necessary for them to have many children to ensure some survive to adulthood. Religious reasons such as the Catholic Church’s opposition to contraception and abortion also leads to high fertility rates amongst Niger’s Christian population (Benefo, 1994).
A lack of education for the majority of Niger’s population (the majority of kids spend less than 5 years in school, CIA World Book Report, 2011) also contributes to high fertility levels. In general, increasing levels of education is associated with a stead fall in fertility, due to increased wealth and better job opportunities. Economically, children in Niger are seen as economic assets and means of security for their parents in old age. The physical nature of agricultural techniques also makes a large number of children desirable, e.g. to work as free labourers on the farm.
Economic value of children is therefore an added incentive for reproduction. In conclusion, China’s ‘One Child Policy’ has been very effective in reducing fertility rates, with the threat of fines for those who have more than one child. The variation between fertility rates in China and Niger also reflects the differences between the two countries socio-cultural and economic situations. Niger is a developing country with vast poverty, high infant mortality and little education for its citizens.
China on the other hand is a rapidly industrializing country, with an expanding economy. References Benefo, K (1994) Determinants of Fertility and Child Mortality In Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana, Washington, The World Bank Caldwell, J (1968) Population Growth and Family Change in Africa, London, Hurst Humanities Press Chen, X (2000) The Social Impact of China’s One Child Policy. Harvard Asia Pacific Review, p 74-76 Feng, W (2005) Can China Afford to Continue it’s One Child Policy? Analysis From The East West Centre.
Number 77, p 1-12. Jones, Huw (2004) Population Geography 2nd Edition. Paul Chapman Publishing. London. Rosenberg, M (2010) China Population. (November 17th 2010). Retrieved from http://geography.about.com/od/populationgeography/a/chinapopulation.htm Rosenberg, M (2011) China’s One Child Policy. (March 2nd 2011). Retrieved from www.geography.about.com/od/populationgeography/a/onechild.htm The World Fact Book, CIA, China (2011). Available at https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ch.
html The World Fact Book, CIA, Niger (2011). Available at https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ng.html
Read More
