Socioeconomic inequalities in teenage pregnancy in Nigeria: evidence from Demographic Health Survey

Chijioke Ifeanyi Okoli; Mohammad Hajizadeh; Mohammad Mafizur Rahman; Eswaran Velayutham; Rasheda Khanam

doi:10.1186/s12889-022-14146-0

Socioeconomic inequalities in teenage pregnancy in Nigeria: evidence from Demographic Health Survey

BMC Public Health. 2022 Sep 12;22(1):1729. doi: 10.1186/s12889-022-14146-0.

Authors

Chijioke Ifeanyi Okoli^{1

2}, Mohammad Hajizadeh³, Mohammad Mafizur Rahman⁴, Eswaran Velayutham⁵, Rasheda Khanam⁴

Affiliations

¹ School of Business, and Centre for Health Research, University of Southern Queensland, Toowoomba, QLD, 4350, Australia. chijioke.okoli@usq.edu.au.
² Department of Health Administration and Management, Faculty of Health Sciences and Technology, College of Medicine, University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus, Enugu, Enugu State, Nigeria. chijioke.okoli@usq.edu.au.
³ School of Health Administration, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Canada.
⁴ School of Business, and Centre for Health Research, University of Southern Queensland, Toowoomba, QLD, 4350, Australia.
⁵ College for Indigenous Studies, Education and Research, University of Southern Queensland, Toowoomba, QLD, 4350, Australia.

Abstract

Background: Despite the high rate of teenage pregnancy in Nigeria and host of negative medical, social and economic consequences that are associated with the problem, relatively few studies have examined socioeconomic inequality in teenage pregnancy. Understanding the key factors associated with socioeconomic inequality in teenage pregnancy is essential in designing effective policies for teenage pregnancy reduction. This study focuses on measuring inequality and identifying factors explaining socioeconomic inequality in teenage pregnancy in Nigeria.

Methods: This is a cross sectional study using individual recode (data) file from the 2018 Nigeria Demographic Health Survey. The dataset comprises a representative sample of 8,423 women of reproductive age 15 - 19 years in Nigeria. The normalized Concentration index (C_n) was used to determine the magnitude of inequalities in teenage pregnancy. The C_n was decomposed to determine the contribution of explanatory factors to socioeconomic inequalities in teenage pregnancy in Nigeria.

Results: The negative value of the C_n (-0.354; 95% confidence interval [CI] = -0.400 to -0.308) suggests that pregnancy is more concentrated among the poor teenagers. The decomposition analysis identified marital status, wealth index of households, exposure to information and communication technology, and religion as the most important predictors contributing to observed concentration of teenage pregnancy in Nigeria.

Conclusion: There is a need for targeted intervention to reduce teenage pregnancy among low socioeconomic status women in Nigeria. The intervention should break the intergenerational cycle of low socioeconomic status that make teenagers' susceptible to unintended pregnancy. Economic empowerment is recommended, as empowered girls are better prepared to handle reproductive health issues. Moreover, religious bodies, parents and schools should provide counselling, and guidance that will promote positive reproductive and sexual health behaviours to teenagers.

Keywords: Concentration curve; Concentration index; Decomposition analysis; Nigeria; Socioeconomic inequalities; Teenage pregnancy.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Adult
Cross-Sectional Studies
Family Characteristics
Female
Health Surveys
Humans
Nigeria / epidemiology
Pregnancy
Pregnancy in Adolescence*
Socioeconomic Factors
Young Adult