Evolution des formes de mariage et d’union et conséquences pour la fécondité

In today’s societies, the family is in crisis and, as an indirect result, so is the institution of marriage. Benin is no exception. The marrying age has not ceased to increase. Young people’s reluctance to get married has been accompanied at the same time by the use of new strategies to live together as a couple, which have not been without consequences on demography in general. This article aims to show, first of all, the sociological foundations for young people’s reluctance to get married and, second, the new matrimonal behaviours adopted and their consequences on family structure and reproductive health.

The data from the general population censuses and the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) conducted in Cameroon allow us to determine the factors of matrimonial dynamics by shedding light on changes that have taken place in various conjugal unions and by reporting on the scope of common law partnerships. While shedding light on the reciprocal influences between the socio-demographic variables and the evolution of common law partnerships, the study, using the average age of the first common law relationship, reveals the new forms of consensual unions. Lastly, the study highlights the vulnerability of women and children living in households formed by couples living in common law partnerships, in a context of poverty marked, in urban settings, by increasing unemployment and prostitution and, in rural zones, by the upsurge in polygamy and early marriages.

Since 15 November 1999, couples in France have had the possibility of officialising their union by means of a new system: the Civil Solidarity Pact (PACS), which is a partnership that is more flexible than marriage, but does not entitle them to the same rights (it is also available to same-sex couples who are not entitled to marriage). Since the Pact came into force, many couples have chosen it to officialise their union for a number of reasons, varying from practical or fiscal reasons to more symbolic reasons, such as the desire to find an alternative to marriage. After more than 10 years of practical application of the system and a relatively widespread use of this type of officialisation, it would seem to be of interest, for different-sex couples, to conduct a comparative analysis of married couples and those who have signed a Civil Solidarity Pact, which is the aim of this paper. We will first ask the question of who, on an individual basis, chooses marriage and/or a Civil Solidarity Pact, and at what age. We will then observe differences or similarities in couples who are married and who have signed a Pact (age difference between spouses/partners, level of education and profession of both parties). We will then analyse the differences in terms of fertility.