direct and indirect estimation of male reproductive outcomes and preferences

Application of conventional demographic approaches in studying fertility poses major analytical hindrance to the successful implementation of various global and national interventions on population in developing countries. Inadequate infrastructure and personnel capacity to capture and reliably track the dynamics of her 160 million population coupled with sustained high fertility rates provide compelling grounds for a review of the current processes, as the country’s population policy remains unrealised. This study sought to explore the inclusion of the stakeholder analysis approach of Health Systems Research in the study of fertility in order to improve our understanding of the dynamics of population change and its consequent effect on the overall reproductive health of a highly populous nation.
The study used data of males abstracted from the 2003 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS). An empirical analysis of variations in fertility outcomes and reproductive preferences of males across the six geo- political zones and other socio-demographic characteristics was done. Peculiar factors which are significantly associated with completed family size/ children ever born (CEB) were also analysed.