Analysis of Fertility Trends by Socioeconomic Inequality, Educational Attainment, and Fertility Literacy in Benin: A Descriptive Study of the EDS and MICS Surveys (1996-2022)
Background: In sub-Saharan Africa, rapid population growth poses a major challenge to sustainable development. Benin has high fertility that varies markedly across socioeconomic settings. This study analyzes fertility trends in Benin over three decades, examining differential variation by education, economic status, and fertility literacy, using data from the EDS and MICS surveys (1996-2022). Methods: This is a descriptive study based on a secondary analysis of the final reports of five Demographic and Health Surveys (EDS: 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011-2012, 2017-2018) and two Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS: 2014, 2021-2022), validated by INSAE/INStaD. Estimates were taken directly from the tables published in these reports. Source selection followed the PRISMA-ScR protocol. Results: The Total Fertility Rate (TFR) declined from 6.0 children per woman in 1996 to 4.7 in 2021-2022, with a rebound to 5.7 between 2014 and 2018. Fertility remains higher in rural than urban areas (mean TFR: 6.0 vs. 4.7). Higher educational attainment is associated with lower fertility. Households in the poorest economic quintiles also show higher fertility levels. Improved fertility literacy and increased contraceptive use (16.9% in 2014 to 23.1% in 2021) are associated with the observed decline. Conclusion: Education, reproductive health literacy, and the reduction of socioeconomic inequalities are essential levers of the fertility transition in Benin. Their integration into public policy is essential to support sustainable demographic development.
References
[1]
Casterline, J.B. and Odden, C. (2016) Trends in Inter-Birth Intervals in Developing Countries 1965-2014. Population and Development Review, 42, 173-194. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1728-4457.2016.00134.x
[2]
UNICEF, WHO (2025) Levels and Trends in Child Mortality in 2024: Estimates Developed by the United Nations Inter-Agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation. United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), World Health Organization (WHO). https://reliefweb.int/report/world/levels-trends-child-mortality-report-2024
[3]
Cleland, J., Conde-Agudelo, A., Peterson, H., Ross, J. and Tsui, A. (2012) Contraception and Health. The Lancet, 380, 149-156. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-6736(12)60609-6
[4]
Bankole, A. (1995) Desired Fertility and Fertility Behaviour among the Yoruba of Nigeria: A Study of Couple Preferences and Subsequent Fertility. Population Studies, 49, 317-328. https://doi.org/10.1080/0032472031000148536
[5]
Tim？us, I.M. and Moultrie, T.A. (2020) Pathways to Low Fertility: 50 Years of Limitation, Curtailment, and Postponement of Childbearing. Demography, 57, 267-296. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13524-019-00848-5
[6]
Dasgupta, A. and Dasgupta, P. (2017) Socially Embedded Preferences, Environmental Externalities, and Reproductive Rights. Population and Development Review, 43, 405-441. https://doi.org/10.1111/padr.12090
[7]
Eastwood, R. and Lipton, M. (2011) Demographic Transition in Sub-Saharan Africa: How Big Will the Economic Dividend Be? Population Studies, 65, 9-35. https://doi.org/10.1080/00324728.2010.547946
[8]
Turner, A. (2009) Population Priorities: The Challenge of Continued Rapid Population Growth. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 364, 2977-2984. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2009.0183
[9]
UNECE, United Nations (2023) Ensuring Rights and Choices amid Demographic Change: Report on the Implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development in the UNECE Region. United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), 221 p. https://unece.org/population/publications/ensuring-rights-and-choices-amid-demographic-change-report-implementation
[10]
WHO (2023) Trends in Maternal Mortality 2000 to 2020: Estimates by WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, World Bank Group and UNDESA/Population Division. World Health Organization (WHO), 108 p. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240068759
[11]
Veillard, J. (2019) Strengthening Primary Care Is the Best Way to Reduce Health Inequities. World Bank Blogs. https://blogs.worldbank.org/fr/voices/renforcer-les-soins-primaires-est-le-meilleur-moyen-de-reduire-les-inegalites
[12]
Bodkin, A., Van Camp, L., Harrington, D. and Simeoni, S. (2024) Health Literacy and Health Promotion. Ontario Agency for Health Protection and Promotion (Public Health Ontario), 14 p.
[13]
Institut National de la Statistique et de l’Analyse économique (INSAE) (2018) Fifth Demo-Graphic and Health Survey in Benin (EDSB-V) 2017-2018. Report No. 5, INSAE, 148 p. https://instad.bj/images/docs/insae-statistiques/enquetes-recensements/EDS/2017-2018/1.Benin_EDSBV_Rapport_final.pdf
[14]
Shapiro, D. and Hinde, A. (2017) On the Pace of Fertility Decline in Sub-Saharan Africa. Demographic Research, 37, 1327-1338. https://doi.org/10.4054/demres.2017.37.40
[15]
United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (2025) World Fertility Report 2024. Report No.: UN DE-SA/POP/2024/TR/NO.10. United Nations, 76 p. https://www.un.org/development/desa/pd/sites/www.un.org.development.desa.pd/files/undesa_pd_2025_wfr_2024_final.pdf
[16]
Sen, A. (1999) Development as Freedom. 3rd Edition, Alfred A. Knopf, 384 p. https://kuangaliablog.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/amartya_kumar_sen_development_as_freedombookfi.pdf
[17]
Bongaarts, J. and Casterline, J. (2013) Fertility Transition: Is Sub-Saharan Africa Different? Population and Development Review, 38, 153-168. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1728-4457.2013.00557.x
[18]
Bongaarts, J. (1978) A Framework for Analyzing the Proximate Determinants of Fertility. Population and Development Review, 4, 105-132. https://doi.org/10.2307/1972149
[19]
Sène, A.M. (2017) évolution de la fécondité et enjeux de développement. Population & Avenir, 735, 15-17. https://doi.org/10.3917/popav.735.0015
[20]
Towriss, C.A. and Tim？us, I.M. (2018) Contraceptive Use and Lengthening Birth Intervals in Rural and Urban Eastern Africa. Demographic Research, 38, 2027-2052. https://doi.org/10.4054/demres.2018.38.64
[21]
Millogo, R., Duthé, G., Diemé, B. and Rossier, C. (2021) Diffusion spatiale de la fécondité basse au Sénégal: Quels facteurs accélèrent la transition démographique? Document de travail DEMOSTAF n？16. INED. https://demostaf.site.ined.fr/sites/default/files/imported_images/inline-images/rte/158/WP16-Millogo-et-al.pdf
[22]
Millogo, R., Rossier, C. and Soura, A.B. (2024) Fertility Transition in Dakar, Ouagadougou, and Nairobi: A Uniform Decline across All Age Groups, Supported by Increasingly Longer Birth Intervals? In: Duthé, G., Dasré, A., Diemé, B.N., Masquelier, B., Pilon, M., Rossier, C., Soura, A.B., Wayack Pambè, M., Marcoux, R., Eds, Promoting and Comparing Existing Statistical Sources to Address Demographic Challenges in Sub-Saharan Africa, Presses de l’Université du Québec, 163-189. (African Societies in Transition).
[23]
Gbéto, J.R.A. and Houngué, V. (2020) Impact de la fécondité sur l’autonomisation économique de la femme au Bénin. Document de travail AERC. African Economic Research Consortium (AERC). https://aercafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/A4aJosette-Rosine-Aniwuvi-and-Veronique-HOUNGUE-%E2%80%93-WIP-French.pdf
[24]
Ahinkorah, B.O., Dickson, K.S. and Seidu, A.A. (2018) Women’s Decision-Making Capacity and Intimate Partner Violence among Women in Sub-Saharan Africa. Archives of Public Health, 76, Article No. 5. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13690-018-0253-9
[25]
Kravdal, ？. (2002) Education and Fertility in Sub-Saharan Africa: Individual and Community Effects. Demography, 39, 233-250. https://doi.org/10.1353/dem.2002.0017
[26]
Caldwell, J.C. and Caldwell, P. (1987) The Cultural Context of High Fertility in Sub-Saharan Africa. Population and Development Review, 13, 409-437. https://doi.org/10.2307/1973133
[27]
Schyve, P.M. (2007) Language Differences as a Barrier to Quality and Safety in Health Care: The Joint Commission Perspective. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 22, 360-361. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-007-0365-3
[28]
Houéto, D. and Laverack, G. (2014) Promotion de la santé et autonomisation dans le contexte africain. http://ebolacommunicationnetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/promotion_de_la_sante_et_autonomisation_dans_le_contexte_africain.pdf
[29]
Marmot, M. (2017) The Health Gap: The Challenge of an Unequal World: The Argument. International Journal of Epidemiology, 46, 1312-1318. https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyx163
