Change in African family size: causes, trends and implications for the African woman

Chinwe M. Akachi-Odoemene, Igoloafrika Youth Foundation

Despite population explosions being witnessed in many African societies, it is a truism that a significant number of African families are now having fewer children than hitherto the case. What have been responsible for this new development, and what are its trends and implications for both the African woman and family? This paper examines the causes, trends and implications of the new shift in African family size. It argues that education is the main cause of the shift, while such other causes as ‘modernity’, changes in socio-economic foundations, public perception as well as such economic factor as women’s new career-disposition were also identified as contributory factors. The paper further highlights the diverse socio-cultural implications of these trends and identifies some coping mechanisms that couples and families adopt in containing the new development. It concludes, however, that despite the change, the premium and demand for the boy-child has not abated.