The Stalling Fertility Transition in Ghana: Does the Changing Proportion of Never Married Women Matter?

Michael Larbi Odame, REGIONAL INSTITUTE FOR POPULATION STUDIES,UNIVERSITY OF GHANA
Faustina Frempong-Ainguah, Regional Institute for Population Studies/University of Ghana
Stephen O. Kwankye, University of Ghana
John Anarfi, UNIVERSITY OF GHANA

Objectives: Ghana’s fertility transition has been characterized by stalling in recent decades. which defies research-driven explanation, and quite contrary to our understanding of the Demographic Transition Theory. This study examines the contribution of changes in the proportion of ever-married and never-married women to the stalling fertility in Ghana. Methodology: This study uses a decomposition analysis to examine how the changes in the proportion of married women based on the 1988-2014 Ghana Demographic and Health Surveys could account for the stalling fertility in the country. Results: The results indicate that decreasing proportions of ever-married women in Ghana are fundamental in accounting for fertility decline in the country. However, the increase in never-married fertility offsets the pace of overall fertility decline in Ghana, hence the stalling. Conclusion: Childbearing before marriage is important in understanding Ghana’s fertility transition and should be accounted for in studies on fertility transition in sub-Saharan Africa.