Global Trends in Teenage Birth Rate

According to 2002 statistics there are obvious trends to the geographical locations where teenage birth are more common. Significantly more children are born to teenage Mothers in less developed countries.

This is particularly a problem in Africa, with Niger coming top of the statistics with a massive 23 per cent of women aged between 15 and 19 giving birth. This is much higher than any other nation. The second highest is neighbouring Nigeria with around 10 per cent of women in this age group giving birth. The highest statistics outside if Africa is India (7%), who come third. India is followed by South Africa and Mexico, who both have a rate of around 6.5 per cent.

When people speak of Western countries they often mean countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Western European nations, rather than geographical position. Out of these the United States has the highest number of children born to teenage Mothers by some distance, and are the only one of these in the top eighteen. They are seventh on the list, with over 5 per cent of teenagers giving birth. This is almost double that of nineteenth ranked New Zealand.

Within Europe, Eastern European nations have the highest rates. Bulgaria is highest (4%) followed by the Ukraine and Romania (both around 3.8%). Macedonia, Georgia and Russia all return statistics of over 3 per cent. These countries tend to be less developed than their West European counterparts so this follows the overall pattern.

There are a number of reasons that could contribute to these statistics. In some cases the number of births is higher is these areas but the number of pregnancies is not. This can be attributed to Safe Abortion being much more easily accessible in more developed countries. People know where to go if they need abortion services, therefore giving women the choice, thus reducing the number of children born to teenage Mothers.

Sex education is significantly better in developed counties. Children therefore understand the risks of pregnancy. Do teenager is all countries understand this to the same extent? In developed nations young people are taught about contraception and how to use it. The lack of contraception is also key, something that is particularly a problem in Africa. There is a lack of access to adequate contraception, and where it is available can be too expensive for many.

There are society differences as well that can contribute to the pregnancy statistics. In some African counties teenage pregnancy is thought of as a positive as is shows a women is fertile. There is also a pattern of earlier marriage in much of Africa, Asia and South America, with the marriage age trend in Europe in particular, getting later all the time. It is also becoming more common for people in developed countries deciding not to have children.

Andrew Marshall ©