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Nqobile Tshili, Chronicle Reporter
ZIMBABWE has a low general fertility rate of 11 percent with women in Bulawayo and Harare being the least reproductive in the country.

Experts argue that the low birth rates being recorded are a result of adoption of Western cultures which advocate for birth control.

It is argued that in the long run this will negatively impact on population growth which is linked to economic growth.

Rural areas have a high fertility rate compared to urban areas with the adoption of Western lifestyles being blamed for urbanites’ small families.

The Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency yesterday released the 2022 Population and Housing Census preliminary results on fertility.

Fertility refers to the ability to conceive.

Announcing the preliminary results, ZimStat director generator Mr Taguma Mahonde said the country’s general fertility rate dropped in the past decade.

He said in 2012 the general fertility rate was at 127 births per 1  000 women dropping to 114 births per 1 000 women in 2022.

General fertility rate is defined as the number of births in a year per 1 000 women in childbearing ages, usually between 15 and 49 years.

Mr Mahonde said Bulawayo has the lowest general fertility rate in the country at 73 births per 1 000 women translating to 7,3 percent.

It is followed by Harare with 91 births per 1 000 women while Mashonaland Central has the highest birth rate at 137 births per 1 000 women.

“The general fertility rate is the simplest fertility measure that tries to relate the births to the population, which is at risk of giving birth. The general fertility rate for Zimbabwe was 114 births per 1 000 women of reproductive ages,” said Mr Mahonde.

“The general fertility rate ranged from 73 in Bulawayo province to 137 in Mashonaland Central province.”

Mr Mahonde said the general fertility rate has its limitations because the control for the age structure is only partial as there may be substantial differences in the age structure between populations within the reproductive age groups.

He said women aged between 20 and 24 were the high childbearing in the country and higher fertility rates were in rural areas.

“There is an indication that women are having children at relatively younger ages in rural areas when compared to urban areas.

The early and last reproductive age group (15-19 and 45-49 years) exhibited the least contribution as expected because there are relatively fewer births at the extreme ends of the reproductive age ranges,” said Mr Mahonde.

He said the average first birth age was 21 years in rural areas compared to 19 years in urban areas.

“The total fertility rate stands at 3,7 percent nationally with rural areas recording 4,2 percent compared to 2,8 percent in urban areas.

Total fertility represents the average number of children a group of women would have by the end of their reproductive years.

Mpilo Central Hospital acting chief executive officer Professor Solwayo Ngwenya said it is not surprising that the general fertility rate is lower in urban areas compared to rural areas.

“It’s because in an urban area people tend to take contraceptives compared to rural areas where they might not have access to them. There is also the issue of economic challenges which is contributing to some people having less children,” he said.

Prof Ngwenya said on average people in urban areas have one or two children whereas in rural areas people will have as many as eight.

He said economic growth is linked to population growth hence leading economies are populous.

Economic analyst Mr Victor Nyoni concurred with Prof Ngwenya and said there is evidence linking a country’s gross domestic product to its population.

Mr Nyoni said highly populous countries produce more products and also consume as much.

“For instance, if one is to run a company for instance Econet, its revenues is determined by the number of clients who are out there. So, if your population is small, you will not be able to perform as much as an economy with a big population,” he said. — @nqotshili