Age patterns of fertility in selected African countries
Kpedekpo, G.M.
Jimlar Mutane 1(1): 9-26
1976
PMID: 12264777 Document Number: 468771
The paper examines the age patterns of fertility of selected African countries using Pavlik's new classification methods and other available methods such as the UN models. Extensive calculations of central measures of the frequency distributions of age specific fertility rates, namely the variance, the mean, the mode and the median, the degree of skewness and coefficients of variation as well as the estimation of the gradients of the relative age specific distributions at ages 22, 27, 32, 37, 42 respectively were made. Shifts in the mean age at motherhood have been examined for countries where data are available (Kenya, Uganda, Zambia, Tanzania, Malawi, Botswana, Swaziland, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Freetown, Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt) and the relationship between the proportions married in the age group 15-29 and the percentage of age specific fertility falling into the 15-29 age group; the mean age at 1st marriage and the level of fertility were also studied. The results show that most of the countries examined are well fitted by the B.. type of the Pavlik's model in which 51-60% of the total fertility are in the 15-29 age group. When the UN classification methods have been used, it was found that the 2 methods gave essentially the same results. In the case of the UN classification models, it was found that most of the countries were well fitted by the UN Broad Peak Model whereas the 14 Francophone African countries are fitted by the early peak model which is the C.. type of Pavlik's model where the percentage falling into the 15-29 age group is 60% and over. Data on the shifts in the mean age at motherhood are available only for a few African countries. In the case of Kenya, it was found that the mean age at motherhood in 1962 was 30.5 years whereas in 1969 it was 29.8 years. The level of total fertility has also increased during the period. The conclusion is that changes in both level and shape are in the expected direction. The relationship between the proportion married at the ages 15 to 29 and the proportion of the age specific rates is not clear but in general the higher the proportion married in the age group 15 to 29 the higher the proportions of the total fertility falling into the 15-29 age group.