New estimates of infant and child mortality for blacks in South Africa, 1968-1979

This report is part of a project to evaluate and improve the quality of mortality data for blacks in South Africa. Infant and child mortality rates of 79/1 000 and 81/1 000 were estimated for 1968-1974 and 1975-1979 respectively. A child mortality rate of 43/1 000 was estimated for 1973-1977. Estimates of infant mortality rates for 1970-1974 and 1975-1979, and the child mortality rate for 1973-1977, are higher than the results reported earlier by other analysts

Patterns of fertility in Nigeria.

Estimates of recent fertility were produced for all Nigeria and for the four broad geographical regions using data from the Nigeria Fertility Survey (NFS) of 1981/1982. The results indicated that fertility was quite high in the decade of the 1970s at an average total fertility rate of 6.8. Analysis of differentials by demographic and other background characteristics, and of determinants, did not show evidence of large shifts in fertility trend in any specific direction, especially when the quality of the data is considered alongside the estimates. It was suggested that, the influence of reporting errors in the NFS notwithstanding, fertility for all of Nigeria appeared to have remained roughly stable at very high levels in the 1970s. Chapter 1 introduced the project, its aim, scope and methodology, and highlighted some features which should be put into consideration in any analysis using the NFS data. Chapter 2 drew attention to possible effects of the quality of the information collected in the NFS on estimates and analysis of fertility. In Chapter 3, the estimated results were presented and, with additional data from other sources, used to examine whether fertility was stable, rising or falling in the recent past in Nigeria. Chapter 4 examined any variations in fertility due to age, age at marriage and age at motherhood with measures estimated when analysis was indexed by age at survey and durations of marriage and motherhood as further search for possible sources of any early fertility change. Chapter 5 carried out an integrated examination of the socioeconomic and proximate determinants of fertility with the same aim as in Chapter 4. Chapter 6 presented a summary of the major findings with a brief discussion of their implications for further research in Nigerian fertility and for the fertility target of the 1988 government policy on population

Long-term Care for Older People in South Africa: The Enduring Legacies of Apartheid and HIV/AIDS

This paper sets out a general framework for analysing long-term care (LTC) systems for older people in different countries and then applies this framework to a specific national setting. The paper considers the extent to which South Africa's emerging LTC system conforms to broader patterns observed across low- and middle-income countries and how far it has been shaped by more local effects. It finds that patterns of demand for LTC vary across different racial categories. Despite having lower rates of ageing that the white population, Africans account for the majority of LTC demand. Residential services cater primarily for older whites and there is a widespread perception that LTC for Africans should be a family responsibility. Across the sector there is evidence of gaps in service availability, limited state oversight and uneven service quality. In 2016 this led to a high-profile political scandal which may prompt more effective state responses to this growing societal challenge

Non-marital teenage hildbearing in Southern Africa : the case of Namibia

In this paper, we used data from the 1992 Demographic and Health Survey to examine proximate and socioeconomic correlates of non-marital teenage childbearing in Namibia. The timing of first sexual intercourse, current marital status and contraceptive use before first birth are strongly associated with teenage motherhood. Region of residence and educational status are two most powerful influences on pattern of teenage childbearing. Women in the Northwest and those with more than a primary level of education tend to experience childbearing in their teens than others. A framework for understanding these results in Namibia and other countries in Southern Africa is suggested. Dans cette communication, des données issues de l’enquête démographique et de santé de 1992 sont utilisées pour examiner les corrélations socio-économiques proches, de la procréation des adolescentes célibataires, en Namibie. Le moment du premier rapport sexuel, la situation matrimoniale du moment et la pratique contraceptive avant la première naissance sont étroitement liés avec la maternité chez les adolescentes. La région d’origine et le niveau d’instruction sont les deux facteurs qui influent le plus fortement sur les tendances à la maternité chez les adolescentes. Les femmes au nord-ouest et celles qui ont un niveau d’instruction dépassant celui de l’enseignement primaire sont plus enclines que d’autres à avoir des enfants avant l’age de 20 ans. Il a été suggéré que soit élaboré un cadre qui facilite la compréhension de ces résultats en Namibie et dans d’autres pays d’Afrique australe

A fresh invitation to studies in African population

The first issue of African Population Studies appeared ten years ago with the aim of disseminating work done on African population by the international community of population researchers. As the official scientific publication of the Union for African Population Studies, African Population Studies has made good contributions to the dissemination of research on African population. In fact, the basic mission of the journal to is disseminate dependable and timely information emanating from original scholarly research on African population. African Population Studies has maintained a bilingual identity, thereby reaching a wider audience of professionals and policy makers. The success of bilingual publishing has gone beyond the published pages to break communication and other artificial barriers between Anglophone and Francophone researchers

APARTHEID AND DEMOGRAPHY IN SOUTH AFRICA

The National Party came into power in 1948 with an election promise to safeguard the political, economic and social interests of minority whites In South Africa. Racial segregation was their major strategy for ensuring the supremacy of white racial group in the country. By the mid-1950s, major pieces of legislation which formed the pillars of apartheid such as the Immorality Act, Population Registration Act, Reservation of Separate Amenities Act and Black Education Act, were firmly in place. Apartheid policies were implemented with zeal by the minority white government to the social and economic detriment of the blacks who constitute the majority In South Africa. The dream of Institutionalized racial segregation met with Intensive Internal resistance and International pressures, and in 1991, the ruling National Party formally renounced apartheid and declared a commitment to the creation of non-raclal democracy In South Africa. By the end of the 1940s, distinct demographic regimes existed In South Africa with potentials for maximum exposure to alternative trends. The aim of this paper is to show briefly how these different regimes reacted to the realities of the Implementation of apartheid with particular reference to mortality, fertility and reproductive behavior, and population activities