Delayed Transition to Independent Dwelling in Relation to Poverty and Unemployment in Developing Countries

Jean Louis Rallu, Institut National d'Études Démographiques (INED)

In developing countries, marriage (or cohabiting union) is not always the final marker of transition to adulthood because it is not as frequently associated with access to independent dwelling as in developed countries. High proportions of ‘married’ males and females below age 30 or sometimes higher are not household heads and reside with their own or their spouses’ parents. Such multi-generational cohabitation is usually linked with low employment of both young husbands and wives. This situation has important consequences on the autonomy of young adult males and empowerment of young adult females, as regards decision on reproductive health, female participation in the labor market and associated consequences on family size and inter-generational transmission of poverty. With the increase in poverty since the 2008 financial crisis, such situations are likely to become more frequent. Employment creation, including for women, would enable more rapid transition to adulthood.