ArticleBMC women's health2023
Prevalence and factors associated with early childbearing in sub-saharan Africa: evidence from demographic and health surveys of 31 countries.
Article in BMC women's health, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers.
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13 citing papers in PubMed, 12 citations in OpenAlex.
- Interventions for improving the health and socio-economic well-being of young parents: a scoping review of studies in Africa.BMJ open · 2026Article
- Levels and trends in fertility rates among adolescents aged 10-14 and 15-19 in 201 countries and areas from 1950 to 2023.BMJ global health · 2026Article
- Understanding barriers to healthcare services utilization among women in Mauritania: a socio-anthropological analysis.International journal for equity in health · 2026Article
- Time to first sexual experience and its predictors among young women (15-24 years) in Zambia: Evidence from 2024 Demographic and Health Survey.PLOS global public health · 2026Article
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- The pooled proportion and associated factors of adolescent pregnancy in 47 low- and middle-income countries: A multilevel analysis.SAGE open medicine · 2026Article
- Lived experiences of motherhood among students in a university in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.African journal of primary health care & family medicine · 2025Article
- Prevalence and Determinants of Early Adolescent Childbearing in High Maternal Mortality Sub-Saharan Africa: A Multilevel Analysis of DHS Data.Journal of epidemiology and global health · 2025Article
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- Influence of socio-contextual factors on the link between traditional and new media use, and young people's sexual risk behaviour in Sub-Saharan Africa: a secondary data analysis.Reproductive health · 2024Article
- "I want one nurse who is friendly to talk to me properly like a friend": Learner preferences for HIV and contraceptive service provision in Gauteng, South Africa.Research square · 2023Article
- Factors associated with fertility intentions among women living with and without human immunodeficiency virus in Zambia.Women's health (London, England)Article
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 2 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundEarly childbearing remains a public health concern in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) because it has substantial implications for women's and children's health and population control. However, little is known about recent changes in early childbearing in the region following the implementation of the Family Planning 2020 initiative (FP2020) national-level interventions. Thus, this study examined factors associated with early childbearing among women in SSA.
methodsThe study used data from the most recent Demographic and Health Surveys conducted in 31 countries in sub-Saharan Africa between 2010 and 2021. The analysis included a pooled sample of 54,671 parous young women aged 20-24 years. A multivariable binary logistic regression model was used to examine the association between early childbearing and individual and household-level factors. All analyses were weighted to account for complex survey design.
resultsThe study shows that the mean prevalence of early childbearing was high in SSA at 39% (95% CI: 35, 43). Chad had the highest prevalence of early childbearing, 62% (95% CI: 60, 64) while Rwanda had the lowest prevalence of 13% (95% CI: 11, 15). Completing secondary school (aOR = 0.57; 95% CI: 0.52, 0.62) or attaining tertiary level education (aOR = 0.32; 95% CI: 0.22, 0.45), first sexual debut in the age range 15-24 years (aOR = 0.15; 95% CI: 0.14, 0.16) and desire for a small family size (aOR = 0.63; 95% CI: 0.58, 0.69) were associated with reduced odds of early childbearing among young women in SSA.
conclusionThe study has established that the prevalence of early childbearing is high in SSA. Level of education, age at first sexual debut, household size, and desired family size are associated with early childbearing in SSA. Governments of SSA countries should enhance sexual and reproductive health interventions to change reproductive behaviour, particularly in adolescents and young women.
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