Fertility Trend and Use of Contraception in Zimbabwe

Akim Mturi, North-West University, Mafikeng Campus
Joshua Kembo, University of South Africa

During the early 1990s, Zimbabwe was cited as one of the few countries in sub-Saharan Africa where fertility transition had begun. Since Zimbabwe has not featured much in the recent debate, this article is filling this gap. TFR was over six during independence in 1980. Recently, it was estimated to be 3.8. This shows that fertility in Zimbabwe is one of the lowest national fertility rates in the region. The fertility trend is explained mainly by contraceptive usage as the contraceptive prevalence rate was estimated to be 60 percent in 2005/06. This is double the proportion estimated in 1980s. It is interesting to note that contraceptive uptake continued even during the years when Zimbabwe was going through serious economic, social and health challenges. The article discusses the reasons that made the Zimbabwe Family Planning Programme successful and analyses the factors that are associated with use of modern contraceptives.