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Indicators on child-bearing
Last update: 22 April 2005

 

Total fertility rate, 2000-2005

Estimated maternal mortality ratio, around 2000

Contraceptive prevalence among married women of childbearing age (%)

 

 

 

 

 

Year

Any method

 

Modern method

 

Afghanistan

7.48

 

1900

 +

2000

5

 

4

 

Albania

2.29

 

55

 +

2002

75

 a

8

 a

Algeria

2.53

 

140

 +

2000

64

 

50

 

Angola

6.75

 

1700

 +

2001

6

 

5

 

Antigua and Barbuda

...

 

...

 

1988

53

 c

51

 c

Argentina

2.35

 

82

 

...

...

 

...

 

Armenia

1.33

 

55

 +

2000

61

 s

22

 

Australia

1.75

 

8

 

1986

76

 

72

 

Austria

1.39

 

4

 

1995/96

47

 v

43

 v

Azerbaijan

1.85

 

94

 +

2001

55

 

12

 

Bahamas

2.30

 

60

 +

1988

62

 c

60

 c

Bahrain

2.47

 

28

 

1995

62

 d s

31

 d

Bangladesh

3.25

 

380

 

1999/00

54

 

44

 

Barbados

1.50

 

95

 

1988

55

 c

53

 c

Belarus

1.24

 

35

 

1995

50

 

42

 

Belgium

1.66

 

10

 

1991/92

78

 n t

74

 n t

Belize

3.20

 

140

 

1991

47

 c

42

 c

Benin

5.87

 

850

 

2001

19

 

7

 

Bermuda

1.67

r

...

 

...

...

 

...

 

Bhutan

4.40

 

420

 +

1994

19

 h

19

 h

Bolivia

3.96

 

420

 +

2000

53

 

27

 

Bosnia and Herzegovina

1.32

 

31

 

2000

48

 

16

 

Botswana

3.20

 

100

 +

2000

40

 

39

 

Brazil

2.35

 

260

 

1996

77

 

70

 

Brunei Darussalam

2.50

 

37

 

...

...

 

...

 

Bulgaria

1.24

 

32

 

1999

42

 

25

 

Burkina Faso

6.67

 

1000

 

2003

14

 

9

 

Burundi

6.80

 

1000

 +

2000

16

 

10

 

Cambodia

4.14

 

450

 

2000

24

 s

19

 

Cameroon

4.65

 

730

 

1998

19

 

7

 

Canada

1.51

 

6

 

1995

75

 v

73

 v

Cape Verde

3.77

 

150

 +

1998

53

 

46

 

Central African Repulic

4.96

 

1100

 

2000

28

 

7

 

Chad

6.65

 

1100

 

2000

8

 

2

 

Chile

2.00

 

31

 

1990

30

 

...

 

China e

1.70

 

56

 

1997

84

 

83

 

China, Hong Kong SAR

0.94

 

...

 

1992

86

 

80

 

China, Macao SAR

0.84

 

20

 

...

...

 

...

 

Colombia

2.62

 

130

 

2000

77

 

64

 

Comoros

4.89

 

480

 +

2000

26

 

19

 

Congo

6.29

 

510

 +

...

...

 

...

 

Cook Islands

...

 

...

 

1996

63

 

60

 

Costa Rica

2.28

 

43

 

1999

80

 

...

 

Côte d'Ivoire

5.06

 

690

 +

1998/99

15

 

7

 

Croatia

1.35

 

8

 

...

...

 

...

 

Cuba

1.61

 

33

 

2000

...

 

72

 

Cyprus

1.63

 

47

 

 

...

 

...

 

Czech Republic

1.17

 

9

 

1997

72

 

63

 

Dem. Rep. of the Congo

6.70

 

990

 +

2001

31

 

4

 

Denmark

1.75

 

5

 

1988

78

 g

72

 g

Djibouti

5.09

 

730

 +

...

...

 

...

 

Dominica

...

 

...

 

1987

50

 c

48

 c

Dominican Republic

2.73

 

150

 +

2002

70

 

66

 

Ecuador

2.82

 

130

 

1999

66

 

52

 

Egypt

3.29

 

84

 

2000

56

 

54

 

El Salvador

2.88

 

150

 +

2002/03

67

 

...

 

Equatorial Guinea

5.89

 

880

 +

...

...

 

...

 

Eritrea

5.53

 

630

 

2002

8

 

5

 

Estonia

1.37

 

63

 

1994

70

 g

56

 g

Ethiopia

5.87

 

850

 

2000

8

 

6

 

Fiji

2.92

 

75

 +

1986

40

 

40

 

Finland

1.72

 

6

 

1989

77

 v

75

 v

France

1.87

 

17

 

1994

75

 v

69

 v

French Guiana

3.41

 

...

 

...

...

 

...

 

French Polynesia

2.39

 

20

 

...

...

 

...

 

Gabon

4.02

 

420

 

2000

33

 

13

 

Gambia

4.75

 

540

 +

2000

10

 

9

 

Georgia

1.48

 

32

 +

1999/00

41

 a

20

 a

Germany

1.32

 

8

 

1992

75

 

72

 

Ghana

4.39

 

540

 +

2003

25

 

19

 

Greece

1.25

 

9

 

...

...

 

...

 

Grenada

...

 

...

 

1990

54

 c

...

 

Guadeloupe

2.06

 

5

 

...

...

 

...

 

Guam

2.95

 

12

 

...

...

 

...

 

Guatemala

4.60

 

240

 

2002

43

 

34

 

Guinea

5.92

 

740

 

1999

6

 

4

 

Guinea-Bissau

7.10

 

1100

 +

2000

8

 

4

 

Guyana

2.29

 

170

 

2000

37

 

36

 

Haiti

3.98

 

680

 

2000

28

 s

23

 

Honduras

3.72

 

110

 

2001

62

 

51

 

Hungary

1.30

 

16

 

1992/93

77

 v

68

 v

Iceland

1.97

 

0

 

...

...

 

...

 

India

3.07

 

540

 

1998/99

48

 

43

 

Indonesia

2.37

 

230

 +

2002/03

60

 

57

 

Iran (Islamic Republic of)

2.12

 

76

 

1997

73

 

56

 

Iraq

4.83

 

250

 +

1989

14

 b d

10

 d

Ireland

1.94

 

5

 

...

...

 

...

 

Israel

2.85

 

17

 

1988

68

 

52

 

Italy

1.28

 

5

 

1996

60

 t

39

 t

Jamaica

2.44

 

87

 

1997

66

 c

63

 c

Japan

1.33

 

10

 

1994

59

 

53

 

Jordan i

3.53

 

41

 

2002

56

 

41

 

Kazakhstan

1.95

 

210

 +

1999

66

 s

57

 

Kenya

5.00

 

1000

 

2003

39

 

32

 

Kiribati

...

 

...

 

1988

37

 

27

 

Korea, Dem. People's Rep.

2.00

 

67

 +

1990/92

62

 

53

 

Korea, Republic of

1.23

 

20

 

1997

81

 

67

 

Kuwait

2.38

 

5

 

1996

50

 d s

41

 d

Kyrgyzstan

2.71

 

110

 +

1997

60

 

49

 

Lao People's Dem. Rep.

4.83

 

650

 +

2000

32

 

29

 

Latvia

1.26

 

42

 

1995

48

 v

39

 v

Lebanon

2.32

 

150

 +

1996

61

 

37

 

Lesotho

3.65

 

550

 +

2000

30

 

30

 

Liberia

6.80

 

760

 +

1986

6

 

6

 

Libyan Arab Jamahiriya

3.03

 

97

 +

1995

40

 b

26

 

Liechtenstein

1.64

r

...

 

...

...

 

...

 

Lithuania

1.28

 

13

 

1995

47

 

31

 

Luxembourg

1.73

 

28

 

...

...

 

...

 

Madagascar

5.40

 

550

 

2003/04

27

 

18

 

Malawi

6.10

 

1800

 

2000

31

 

26

 

Malaysia

2.93

 

41

 

1994

55

 j

30

 j

Maldives

4.33

 

110

 +

...

...

 

...

 

Mali

6.92

 

1200

 

2001

8

 

7

 

Malta

1.50

 

21

 

...

...

 

...

 

Marshall Islands

5.71

k

...

 

1985

27

 

18

 

Martinique

1.98

 

4

 

...

...

 

...

 

Mauritania

5.79

 

1000

 

2000/01

8

 

5

 

Mauritius

1.97

 

24

 

1991

75

 

49

 

Mexico

2.40

 

83

 

1997

68

 

60

 

Micronesia, Fed. States of

4.35

 

...

 

...

...

 

...

 

Mongolia

2.45

 

110

 

2000

67

 

54

 

Morocco

2.76

 

220

 

1995

50

 

42

 

Mozambique

5.51

 

1000

 +

1997

6

 

5

 

Myanmar

2.46

 

360

 +

1997

33

 

28

 

Namibia

3.95

 

300

 +

1992

29

 

26

 

Nepal

3.71

 

740

 

2001

39

 

35

 

Netherlands

1.72

 

16

 

1993

79

 v

76

 v

Netherlands Antilles

2.12

 

20

 

...

...

 

...

 

New Caledonia

2.43

 

10

 

1988

25

 

...

 

New Zealand

1.96

 

7

 

1995

75

 

72

 

Nicaragua

3.30

 

230

 +

2001

69

 

66

 

Niger

7.91

 

1600

 +

2000

14

 

4

 

Nigeria

5.85

 

800

 +

2003

13

 

8

 

Norway

1.79

 

16

 

1988/89

74

 u v

69

 u v

Occ. Palestinian Territory

5.57

 

100

 +

...

...

 

...

 

Oman

3.78

 

87

 +

1995

24

 d s

18

 d

Pakistan

4.27

 

500

 +

2001

28

 

20

 

Panama

2.70

 

160

 

1984

58

 

54

 

Papua New Guinea

4.10

 

300

 +

1996

26

 

20

 

Paraguay

3.87

 

170

 

1998

57

 

48

 

Peru

2.86

 

410

 

2000

69

 

50

 

Philippines

3.22

 

200

 

2003

49

 

33

 

Poland

1.26

 

13

 

1991

49

 v

19

 v

Portugal

1.47

 

5

 

1979/80

66

 

33

 

Puerto Rico

1.92

 

25

 

1995/96

78

 

68

 

Qatar

3.03

 

7

 

1998

43

 d s

32

 d

Republic of Moldova

1.23

 

36

 

2000

62

 

43

 

Reunion

2.49

 

41

 +

1990

67

 c

62

 c

Romania

1.26

 

49

 

1999

64

 

30

 

Russian Federation

1.33

 

67

 

1999

73

 p

53

 p

Rwanda

5.70

 

1400

 

2000

13

 s

6

 

Saint Kitts and Nevis

2.60

m

...

 

1984

41

 c

37

 c

Saint Lucia

2.24

 

...

 

1988

47

 c

46

 c

St Vincent/Grenadines

2.27

 

...

 

1988

58

 c

55

 c

Samoa

4.42

 

130

 

1990

34

 

34

 

Sao Tome and Principe

4.06

 

 

 

2000

29

 

27

 

Saudi Arabia

4.09

 

23

 

1996

32

 d s

29

 d

Senegal

5.05

 

690

 +

1997

13

 

8

 

Serbia and Montenegro

1.65

 

11

 

2000

58

 

33

 

Seychelles

1.98

l

...

 

...

...

 

...

 

Sierra Leone

6.50

 

2000

 +

2000

4

 

4

 

Singapore

1.35

 

30

 

1997

62

 

53

 

Slovakia

1.20

 

3

 

1991

74

 g

41

 g

Slovenia

1.22

 

17

 

1994

74

 

59

 

Solomon Islands

4.33

 

130

 +

...

...

 

...

 

Somalia

6.43

 

1100

 +

...

...

 

...

 

South Africa

2.80

 

230

 +

1998

56

 

55

 

Spain

1.27

 

4

 

1995

81

 v

67

 v

Sri Lanka

1.97

 

92

 

1993

66

 q

44

 q

Sudan

4.45

 

590

 +

1992/93

8

 b o

7

 o

Suriname

2.60

 

110

 

2000

42

 

41

 

Swaziland

3.95

 

370

 +

2000

28

 

26

 

Sweden

1.64

 

2

 

1981

78

 g

71

 g

Switzerland

1.41

 

7

 

1994/95

82

 t

78

 t

Syrian Arab Republic

3.47

 

160

 +

1995

36

 b

28

 

Tajikistan

3.81

 

100

 +

2000

34

 

27

 

Thailand

1.93

 

44

 

1996/97

72

 

70

 

The FYR of Macedonia

1.53

 

23

 

...

...

 

....

 

Timor-Leste

7.79

 

660

 +

...

...

 

...

 

Togo

5.37

 

570

 

2000

26

 

9

 

Tonga

3.54

 

...

 

...

...

 

...

 

Trinidad and Tobago

1.61

 

160

 

2000

38

 

33

 

Tunisia

2.00

 

120

 

1994

60

 

51

 

Turkey

2.46

 

70

 +

1998

64

 

38

 

Turkmenistan

2.76

 

31

 +

2000

62

 s

53

 

Uganda

7.10

 

880

 

2000/01

23

 

18

 

Ukraine

1.12

 

35

 

1999

68

 

38

 

United Arab Emirates

2.53

 

54

 +

1995

28

 d

24

 d

United Kingdom

1.66

 

13

 

2002

84

 

81

 

United Rep. of Tanzania

5.04

 

1500

 

1999

25

 s

17

 

United States of America

2.04

 

17

 

1995

76

 

71

 

U.S. Virgin Islands

2.15

 

...

 

...

...

 

...

 

Uruguay

2.30

 

27

 

...

...

 

...

 

Uzbekistan

2.74

 

24

 +

2002

68

 

63

 

Vanuatu

4.15

 

130

 

1991

15

 

15

 

Venezuela

2.72

 

96

 

1982

52

 

40

 

Viet Nam

2.32

 

130

 +

2002

79

 

57

 

Western Sahara

3.89

 

850

 

...

...

 

...

 

Yemen

6.20

 

570

 

1997

21

 

10

 

Zambia

5.65

 

750

 

2001/02

34

 

23

 

Zimbabwe

3.56

 

1100

 

1999

54

 s

50

 

Source: United Nations Population Division and World Health Organization

Sources:

Total fertility rate
Total fertility rate estimates from Population Division of the United Nations Secretariat, World Population Prospects: The 2004 Revision, Volume I: Comprehensive Tables (United Nations publication, forthcoming), supplemented by Demographic Yearbook 2000 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E/F.02.XIII.1) and Demographic Yearbook 2001 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E/F.03.XIII.1);

Estimated maternal mortality ratio
Maternal mortality ratio estimates from World Health Organization, United Nations Children's Fund and United Nations Population Fund, published in Maternal mortality in 2000: Estimates developed by WHO, UNICEF and UNFPA, accessed on 23 September 2004;

Contraceptive prevalence
Contraceptive prevalence from World Population Monitoring, 2002 (ESA/P/WP.171*, 9 January 2002), supplemented by contraceptive use data published in http://www.measuredhs.com accessed in August 2004, Demographic and Health Survey national reports, Gulf Family Health Survey national reports, DHS + Dimensions, vol. 3, no. 2, Fall 2001, DHS Comparative Reports No. 1, Unmet Need at the End of the Century, Sept. 2001, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and ORC Macro, Reproductive, Maternal and Child Health in Eastern Europe and Eurasia: A Comparative Report, April 2003, Reproductive Health Survey national reports and Women's Indicators and Statistics Database (Wistat), Version 4, CD-ROM (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.00.XVII.4).

Footnotes:;

... Not available.
+
For countries lacking complete vital registration or other acceptable national estimates of maternal mortality, the estimates are developed using a model. For each country, the regression model was used to predict the proportion maternal among deaths of women of reproductive age (PMDF), and the prediction was then applied to the WHO estimated envelope of HIV-adjusted deaths of women of reproductive age in 2000 to estimate maternal deaths. The MMR was then obtained by dividing the number of maternal deaths by an estimate of the number of births in 2000.
a For women aged 15-44 in union.
b Adjusted from source to exclude breast-feeding.
c Including visiting unions.
d From a health survey covering only households of nationals of the country.
e For statistical purposes the data for China do not include Hong  Kong and Macao Special Administrative Regions.
g For all sexually active women of childbearing age.
h For all women of childbearing age.
i Excluding the West Bank.
j Peninsular Malaysia only
k Data refer to 1999.
l Data refer to 2001.
m Data refer to 1998.
n Flemish population only.
o North Sudan only.
p For women aged 15-44 in union living in the cities of Ivanovo, Yekaterinburg and Perm.
q Excluding areas containing roughly 15 per cent of the population.
r Data refer to 1997.
s Including the lactational amenorrhoea method and/or breastfeeding if reported as the current contraceptive method.
t Including some cases of sterilization for non-contraceptive reason.
u Women currently married or cohabiting who were born in 1945, 1950, 1955, 1960, 1965 or 1968.
v Respondents whose contraceptive status is unknown are considered non-users of contraception. The percentage of respondents in this category is 45.7 in Austria, 19.5 in Canada, 18.4 in Finland, 6.2 in France, 4.1 in Hungary, 29.3 in Latvia, 0.0 in Netherlands, 1.5 in Norway, 32.1 in Poland and 0.1 in Spain.

Technical notes:

Total fertility rate estimates the total number of children a girl will bear if her child-bearing follows the current fertility patterns and she lives through her entire child-bearing years. Total fertility rate is estimated by the Population Division of the United Nations Secretariat using the latest available demographic data from countries and given as five-year averages.


Maternal mortality ratio is defined as the number of maternal deaths divided by the number of live births for a given year and expressed per 100,000 live births. Estimates shown here have been rounded according to the following scheme: <50 : no rounding; 50-99 : round to nearest 5; 100-999 : round to nearest 10; 1000 and over : rounded to the nearest 100. Maternal deaths are defined as those caused by deliveries and complications of pregnancy, child-birth and the puerperium. However, the exact definition varies from source to source and is not always clear in the original, particularly as regards the inclusion of abortion-related deaths.


Furthermore, the World Health Organization observes that most maternal deaths go unregistered in areas where maternal mortality rates are highest. To address this information gap, WHO and the United Nations Children's Fund recently developed new estimates of maternal mortality using a dual strategy. This involved using available data wherever possible, adjusted to account for the common problems of under-reporting and misclassification of maternal deaths, and developing a simple model to predict values for countries with no reliable national data. The estimates derived from this approach are considered to be more reliable than earlier ones and are the ones shown here.


Contraceptive use among currently married women of childbearing age has been compiled by the Population Division of the United Nations Secretariat from the results of national surveys associated with the Demographic and Health Surveys, the Maternal and Child Health Surveys and numerous other national surveys, and published in World Population Monitoring, 2002(ESA/P/WP.171*, 9 January 2002). Where possible, women in consensual unions are included. Age groups interviewed vary slightly across countries: most African, Asian and South American countries cover women aged 15-49; most Central American and Caribbean countries cover women aged 15-44; while European countries tend to cover a narrower age range, such as 15-44, 20-49 or variations falling close to these ranges.


Both overall contraceptive prevalence (that is, percentage using contraception regardless of method) and prevalence of modern methods are shown. The group modern methods refers to clinic and supply methods, and includes highly effective methods widely developed and adopted for contraceptive practice over the past few decades. These are the methods most often offered by family planning programmes. Specifically, they include male and female sterilization, IUDs, the pill, injectible hormonal contraceptives, condoms and female barrier methods (diaphragm, cervical cap, spermicidal foams, creams, jellies and sponges).