Fertility Trends in Nepal, 1977-1995
The article presents estimates of fertility trends in Nepal for the period 1977-95, derived from two national surveys: the 1991 Nepal fertility, family planning, and health survey (NFFPHS) and the 1996 Nepal family health survey (NFHS). Various fertility measures are estimated, including age-specific fertility rates (ASFRs), the total fertility rate (TFR), period parity progression ratios (PPPRs), and the total fertility rate and the total marital fertility rate derived from PPPRs (TFRp) and (TMFRp). The article concludes that fertility has been declining somewhat more slowly than commonly thought. The total fertility rate is estimated to have declined from 5.80 to 4.95 between 1977 and 1995. It declined more rapidly in urban areas than in rural areas, and more rapidly among women with more than a primary education than among women with a primary education or less.