THE IMPACTS OF SPOUSES’ EDUCATION AND MATERNAL HEALTH ON FERTILITY IN PAKISTAN: AN ECONOMETRIC ANALYSIS

Abstract

Purpose of the study: This paper primarily aims to recognize, develop, and examine the impacts of spouses’ education and maternal health status in cooperation with a variety of other covariates (demographic, social, economic, cultural, and attitudinal) on fertility in Pakistan. Methodology: This study mainly aimed to discover how spouse’s education and maternal health inputs help in controlling high fertility using four data sets of Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey (1990-91, 2006-07, 2012-13 and 2017-18) through count data model (Poisson regression). Main Findings: Our empirical results proved the hypotheses that educated spouses and healthy mothers practice family planning tools (contraceptives) to lower down the total fertility rates. Application of this study: Educated husband and wife will keep their family size smaller to devote more on children’s nutrition, health, and education. In general, rise in intentional birth control method make the education policy more helpful in reducing fertility. Findings draw government attention for embarking on public enlightenment campaigns to generate wakefulness regarding the long-term significance of fertility regulation in Pakistan. Novelty/Originality: The study is one of its kind because it attempted to explore the link among spouse’s education, maternal health inputs, and child’s health outcomes with fertility that could be used to benchmark for additional research in Pakistan.