From: wsargeant@igc.apc.org (Winslow L. Sargeant)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.african
Subject: IPS:Ghana, family sizes decreasing
Date: 25 Jul 92 17:12:17 GMT

/* Written 12:08 am  Jul 25, 1992 by newsdesk in cdp:ips.englibrary */
/* ---------- "GHANA: FAMILY SIZES DECREASING" ---------- */
Copyright Inter Press Service 1992, all rights reserved.  Permission to re-
print within 7 days of original date only with permission from 'newsdesk'.

Reference: Third World Dvpmnt
Title: GHANA: FAMILY SIZES DECREASING


an inter press service feature

by edward ameyibor

accra, july 22 (ips) -- attitudes towards family size are
changing radically in this west african nation of about 15
million people, making the urban population more receptive to
family planning.

ministry of health statistics reveal that the average number
of children per woman has gone down from seven to six nationwide
and is even lower in the urban areas.

this drop in family sizes is to a large extent due to the
economic hardship occasioned by unsubsidised health services,
high school fees and accommodation problems.

''child bearing is now a luxury most of us cannot afford'',
says a young trader who operates between rome, italy, and accra.

when joseph nkrumah recently married he made no secret of the
fact that they plan to have only two children, regardless of
whether they were boys or girls.

surprisingly, many elderly people who counselled the young
couple did not as in the past urge them to reproduce to fill the
earth.

himself an only child, his own mother advised him to have
a happy family life with children he could afford to educate.

''remember your father died long ago and i struggled
throughout to educate you. do not make any mistakes'', he
recounts she said.

andrew king, a factory supervisor at the port city of tema
was bitter when he realised that landlords are not happy to rent
rooms to people with large families.

''they claim they are too noisy and destroy things like the
water closet too often. this is how white people think in
places like germany where i trained. our people too will soon be
prefering dogs to people'', he says.

indeed, the days when child bearing was an honour, when
children were precious -- the more the richer -- are fast
dissapearing, taking with them traditional attitudes to family
planning. (more/ips)


ghana: family (2)

''i should have the freedom to decide on the number of
children i should have. it is not the business of my husband
only'', says peace amedzro, a university graduate.

some years ago, the likes of amedzro dared not utter such
words. but as more women get education, the tendency to have
many children falls.

in fact it has been part of the governments family planning
strategy to adopt policies that keep girls in school in an
attempt to reduce the incidence of teenage pregnancies.

at a seminar for secondary school children in ashanti,
southern ghana, joana appiah dwomoh, ashanti deputy regional
secretary advises girls to aim to be women before being mothers.

according to an official of the ghana family planning
programme (gfpp) the message of a better life through family
planning seems to be sinking in.

''it is true about 60 per cent of our population are youth,
active and virile, but their expectations of family sizes is at
worst, four.

''this is the hope for the future and proof that our
campaigns and efforts are yielding fruit''.

the ghana institute of journalism is now offering a course in
population communication to package messages and strategies on
population issues through to the public.

these efforts are commendable, but more needs to be done
to make people more receptive to family planning, particularly
among the rural and muslim communities.

although the message of birth control has reached more than
73 percent of the sexually active population, only half of that
figure use family planning services and counselling centres.

ghana's population growth rate is still high at three percent
per year.

recently, ghanaian president jerry rawlings, pointed out that
rapid population growth is eroding the economic successes of the
government.

''more mouths appear everyday to consume what we are
producing'', said rawlings. (end/ips/ea/tvh/oa/92)