Reviewer’s report
Title: Women’s empowerment and fertility preferences in high fertility countries in Sub-Saharan Africa
Version: 1 Date: 27 Dec 2018
Reviewer: George Odwe
Reviewer's report:
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Comments
*Overall,  the  authors  have  incorporated  some  of  the  comments.  However,  I  have  a  few  
comments, though, about sections of the manuscript that could be revised or further developed. First,  
the manuscript needs an edit for grammar and spelling.
Background
*Consider deleting the first paragraph as it is redundant
*The authors should strengthen literature review to make it 'tight', that is, readers should be able  
to understand the current knowledge and gaps on the association between women's empowerment ideal  
number of children and ability to achieve that ideal number in the Sub-Saharan African context.  
Generally, women's empowerment is associated with a desire for fewer children in four Sub-Saharan  
African countries. In some context, the results are mixed, while in others it's negative. However, the  
results could be an artefact of data or a reflection of the flaws in the measures of empowerment—these  
are some of the debates missing in the current paper.
*The first research question appears irrelevant to the current study as it focuses on women's  
empowerment as the main outcome. However, in the analysis, authors are trying to determine the  
association between women empowerment and fertility preference (ideal family size), and further to  
disentangle the role of economic and cultural factors in the 4 francophone countries. The two are  
different 
Conceptual framework
*The conceptual framework should form part of the background as it is part of the literature  
review.
*The  conceptual  framework should also be  summarized  (maybe  to one paragraph) and the  
authors should ensure that all relevant citations are provided.
*In Figure 1, the main outcome should be fertility preference (ideal family size) & having more  
than one's ideal number of children
*Avoid indicating etc. in the boxes in Fig1, instead include only the variables that are used in the  
study and if there are some that are not measured/used, then the authors should indicate which ones.
*Indicate the source of the Conceptual framework and indicate "adapted from (source)". The  
source should be the authors since we do not have empirical evidence 
 
Source of data
*It is not clear the utility of merging the three datasets considering the unit of analysis-married  
women 35+
Discussion 
*The  discussion  should  focus  on  the  relationship  between  women  empowerment  and  ideal  
number of children; and whether such a relationship is explained by family, economic and cultural  
factors. 
*There is some inconsistency in the findings that require more clarification. for example, in  
Burkina Faso, economic empowerment index have a significant relationship with ideal number of  
children (Table 4 ); however, it does not matter in the ability to achieve the desired family size- authors  
should shed more light on such discrepancies
Are the methods appropriate and well described?
If not, please specify what is required in your comments to the authors.
Yes
Does the work include the necessary controls?
If not, please specify which controls are required in your comments to the authors.
Yes
Are the conclusions drawn adequately supported by the data shown?
If not, please explain in your comments to the authors.
Yes
Are you able to assess any statistics in the manuscript or would you recommend an additional  
statistical review?
If  an  additional  statistical  review  is  recommended,  please  specify  what  aspects  require  further  
assessment in your comments to the editors.
I am able to assess the statistics
Quality of written English
Please indicate the quality of language in the manuscript:
Needs some language corrections before being published
Declaration of competing interests
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1. Have you in the past five years received reimbursements, fees, funding, or salary from an  
organisation  that  may  in  any  way  gain  or  lose  financially  from  the  publication  of  this  
manuscript, either now or in the future?
2. Do you hold any stocks or shares in an organisation that may in any way gain or lose financially  
from the publication of this manuscript, either now or in the future?
3. Do  you  hold  or are  you  currently applying  for  any patents  relating  to  the  content  of  the  
manuscript?
4. Have you received reimbursements, fees, funding, or salary from an organization that holds or  
has applied for patents relating to the content of the manuscript?
5. Do you have any other financial competing interests?
6. Do you have any non-financial competing interests in relation to this paper?
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your reply is yes to any, please give details below.
I declare that I have no competing interests
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