Fertility Decisions and Public Policy

The world has been facing drastic changes of demographical transition. In 2026, the global human population is approximately 8.3 billion. While population growth continues due to advances in medicine and agriculture, the annual growth rate has slowed to around 0.83%, driven by declining fertility rates worldwide. Fertility decline is an important to be studied by sociologists, demographers, development studies, gender studies, health economists, anthropologists, planners, policy makers, health care institutions and civil society organizations to understand the socio-economic and cultural factors associated with healthcare of young couples, healthcare facility, availability and accessibility of traditional / indigenous / modern healthcare facilities, Assisted Reproductive Technology(ART), Fertility Centres, fertility behaviour and decision, fertility control, fertility decline, role of family system, social capital and social norms.

Fertility decision is not an independent act of woman or couples in a family level but it is a social phenomenon that is regulated by several socio-economic, cultural, political factors to understand the real cause for the fertility decisions. Modernization of society, changes in life events and sedentary life style among young population lead them to have unique standard of healthcare and fitness that results in fertility planning and decision making either natural methods or technological supported method of fertility behaviour. Hence, the Sociological study of the association between social factors and fertility decisions today with regards to the state of public policy (Social Policy) in different countries is mandatory and need of the hour to predict and provide solution to the existing social problem of fertility decline.