Birth Spacing and assessment of fertility transition in Pakistan at Sub-national level: An analysis using synthetic parity progression ratio approach

Previous studies have addressed the fertility transition in Pakistan; however, no study has focused so far on the fertility changes by parity progression ratio and birth spacing as well as on sub-national fertility dynamics. It is well documented that fertility transition in Pakistan started in the late 1980s. However, little is known about the fertility changes at sub-national level. We use two DHS conducted in Pakistan and PRHFPS 2000-01 to examine the various aspect of fertility transition in Pakistan at sub-national level. We use synthetic parity progression ratios which, besides providing estimates for average lifetime parity, also allow for decomposition of lifetime parity by birth order. In addition to the discussion of the substantive results, the paper also comments on the quality of survey data in Pakistan.