Prize for BiB research • 28.04.2023Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on fertility in Africa

Dr. Andreas Backhaus

Using data from the Performance Monitoring for Action (PMA) project processed by IPUMS, the economist found that pregnancy rates in four sub-Saharan African countries by the end of the first year of the pandemic were mostly similar to the pre-2020 rates . Where they changed significantly, they declined -- for example, among low-educated and very young women in Burkina Faso. The background to the analysis was the concern that women might have poorer access to family planning facilities and modern contraceptive methods during the pandemic, and that this, in combination with other factors, could in turn lead to an increase in pregnancies. However, that is not what the data available so far show, Backhaus concludes.

This study provides rare insight into the fertility consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic in sub-Saharan Africa, the jury awarding the prize emphasizes. In 2022, there were a total of 18 IPUMS Research Awards winners in eight different thematic categories. The annual IPUMS Research Awards competition was launched in 2010, with research in the field of “Global Health” having been honored since 2018. The awards honor the best research using IPUMS data to advance or deepen the understanding of social and demographic processes.

Original Publication

Backhaus, Andreas (2022): Pregnancies and contraceptive use in four African countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. Vienna Yearbook of Population Research:459–476