Final Report (PDF, 2132K) - Measure DHS

5. FERTILITY PREFERENCES5.1 Future Fertility PreferencesIn the ODHS interview, all currently married women were asked whether they wanted to haveanother child, and, if so, how long they wanted to wait before having the next child. Married women whowere pregnant at the time of the interview were asked if they wanted a another child after the one theywere expecting. The purpose of these questions was to investigate the fertility desires of women ofchildbearing age, with a view to assessing the need for family planning services. Women who want tocease childbearing or postpone their next child can be thought of as being in need of contraception.Table 5.1 and Figure 5.1 show the percent distribution of married women by whether they wantanother child and, if so, how long they want to wait to have their next child. Almost one-quarter (23percent) of married women in Ondo State do not want to have any more children, 11 percent areundecided about having another child, and 65 percent want another child. Among those wanting anotherchild, more than half want to wait two or more years before having the child.Table 5.1Percent Distribution of Currently Married Women 15-49 byDesire for More Children According to Number of Living Children,ODHS, 1986Number of Living Children *DesireFor MoreChildren O 1 2 3 4 5 6+ TotalWant No More 1.3 1.7Want AnotherWithin 2 Yrs. 73.4 25.7Want AnotherAfter 2+ Yrs. 13.9 88.3Want Another,Don't Know When i0.i 12.6Undecided ifWant Another 1.3 1.75.3 11.3 22.3 34.0 49.2 23.331.8 20.2 20.9 11.7 8.7 19.851.6 49.0 37.8 30.4 20.2 38.09.5 9.9 7.6 3.8 3.6 7.41.8 9.6 11.6 20.2 18.4 11.4Total i00.0 100.0 I00.0 100.0 100.0 i00.0 i00.0 100.0No. of Women 79 420 337 406 448 488 665 2832* Includes current pregnancy45