Fertility Behavior of Rai Community (A Case Study of Indranipokhari VDC, Khotang)

Abstract

This was a cross-sectional study, which covered 180 married Rai women of 15-49 years of age-group of Indranipokhari Village Development Committee of Khotang district. The main objective of this study was to observe the fertility behavior of married Rai women with the relationship of some selected socio-economic, socio-cultural and demographic variables. Number of children ever born is one of the best indicators for fertility study, which was taken as dependent variable and measured in terms of number of child birth of the respondents in the study area.

Method: Main data were collected by administering well-structured questionnaire on households and individuals to collected socio-economic, demographic and cultural background of the household and individual considering these variables would be responsible for affecting fertility behaviors of the study area. Proportionate sampling method was used for the selection of households assuming that each household may consist of one married women aged 15-49 years with at least one child. However, this study was focused on purposively to study fertility behavior of Rai women of Indranipokhari Village Development Committee of Khotang district. Chi-square test was performed to observe the relationship between fertility behavior and education and occupation of respondents' and their husbands, age at first marriage, age at first birth, knowledge about family planning, having decision on respondents' health care and their children, interval of breastfeeding, timing of sexual intercourse and cash contribution to the household expenditure.

Results: Among the selected variables, only eight variables were turned out to be statistically significant. Education, husbands' occupational status and decision on children health care were found significant at 1 percent whereas cash contribution, age at first marriage, age at first birth, breastfeeding and family planning were turned out to be significant at 5 percent and occupational status of respondents and decision on respondents' health care were revealed just significant factors impacting their fertility behavior at 10 percent only.

Conclusion: Only individual characteristics of the respondents' and their husbands were turned out to be statistically significant factors for influencing fertility and not household characteristics. Hence, individual development regarding socio-economic, demographic and cultural norm, particularly more focus on women that will assist to regulate fertility behavior in order to reduce population growth rate and improve reproductive and maternal and child health status, which will be also helpful to achieve some Millennium Development Goals. If the government and other concerned agencies have to formulate effective policy and program in future regarding to reducing population growth rate and improving reproductive and maternal and child health in the country, findings of this study could be useful and equally applicable to other similar social groups of Nepal.