By Admin 
Age at First Birth in Afghanistan: Afghanistan is counted among those countries in the world where it is common for girls to become mothers at an early age and the fertility rate is also very high worldwide. The social structure, traditions and economic conditions here together create a situation where girls assume the responsibility of becoming mothers very early. According to international data, the average age of becoming a mother for the first time in Afghanistan is 19.9 years. This means that a large number of girls give birth to a child before they complete 20 years. In many communities this age is even lower, due to which early marriage, lack of education and limited health facilities are observed.
Fertility rate very high
If we talk about fertility rate, this figure is even more surprising. In Afghanistan, a woman gives birth to an average of 4.84 children in her lifetime. This rate comes in the category of countries with the highest fertility rates in the world. Although this rate was 7.28 in 1960, which has now come down to around five, but its height even today indicates serious social and health challenges. This decline in birth rate has been slow and considering the current situation, there is little possibility of it decreasing rapidly in the coming years.
rapidly growing population
One of the main reasons for the rapid increase in the country’s population is the high birth rate. Only between 2022 and 2023 the number of children born was 12 lakh 28 thousand more than the number of deaths. That is, only naturally without taking into account the people moving from one place to another. An increase of about 3 percent was recorded in the population of Afghanistan. This increase may put huge pressure on the country’s social, economic and health system in future.
Teenage motherhood is also a major concern in Afghanistan. In 1960, the birth rate among girls aged 15 to 19 was 140.6 per 1,000, which has come down to 64.1 per 1,000 in 2023. This decline is definitely positive, but this rate is still much higher than the average. Despite some progress in education and awareness, motherhood still remains a part of girls’ early lives. This is the reason that in 2024, about 24 percent of the total population of the country will be women of reproductive age (15 to 49 years). After the arrival of Taliban, there has been a lot of change in the status of women in Afghanistan. According to media reports, there have been many restrictions on women’s education, apart from this many strict rules have been imposed on them.
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