Overview

The Demographic and Health Surveys have been collecting data on fertility for over 20 years. DHS reports dedicate three chapters to different aspects of fertility.  The Current Fertility chapter includes data on total fertility rates, trends in fertility, birth intervals, mother’s age at first birth, and teenage fertility. Another chapter highlights Other Proximate Determinants of Fertility such as marital status, polygyny, age at first marriage, age at first sex, and recent sexual activity.  Finally, DHS reports include a section on Fertility Preferences. Data collected include desire for more children, ideal number of children, need for family planning and fertility planning.

Related Indicators

Current fertility

• Age-specific and total fertility rates
• General fertility rate
• Crude birth rate
• Fertility by background characteristics
• Total fertility rate and proportion of women pregnant
• Mean number of children ever born to women aged 40-49
• Fertility trends
• Fertility by marital duration
• Children ever born and living
• Birth intervals by background characteristics
• Age at first birth
• Teenage pregnancy and motherhood by background characteristics
• Birth order

Other Proximate Determinants of Fertility:

• Current marital status
• Sexual relationships of non-married women
• Number of co-wives (women)/ Number of wives (men)
• Age at first marriage
• Age at first sexual intercourse
• Recent sexual activity
• Median and mean durations for postpartum amenorrhea, abstinence and insusceptibility
• Prevalence/incidence mean for postpartum amenorrhea, abstinence and insusceptibility
• Termination of exposure to the risk of pregnancy

Fertility Preferences:

• Fertility preference by number of living children
• Fertility preferences by age
• Desire to limit childbearing
• Need for family planning services
• Ideal and actual number of children
• Mean ideal number of children by background characteristics
• Fertility planning status
• Wanted fertility rates