Turkey ranks 3rd in Europe on total fertility rate list

ANKARA

The total fertility rate, which was 2.38 children in the country in 2001, has dropped to 1.70 children in 2021, but Turkey has ranked the third among the EU member countries after France and Romania with this rate, Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK) has announced.

According to “Birth Statistics 2021” data issued by TÜİK on May 12, around 1 million live births occurred in 2021 in the country. Some 51.3 percent of live births were boys and 48.7 percent were girls.

“Total fertility rate” means that the average number of live births that a woman would have under the assumption that she survived to the end of her reproductive life, which is the 15-49 age group, and had a child according to the specific fertility rate at that given age.

The statistics showed that a woman in Turkey gave approximately 1.70 live births during her productive life in 2021.

The province having the highest total fertility rate was the southeastern Şanlıurfa with 3.81 children. Şırnak, a province from the same region, was runner-up with 3.18 children and neighboring province Mardin was the third with 2.78 children.

The province having the lowest total fertility rate was the Aegean province of Kütahya with 1.21 children. It was followed by two Black Sea provinces, Bartın with 1.25 children and Zonguldak with 1.26 children.

When the total fertility rates of 27 European Union member countries were analyzed, Turkey ranked third highest in the list.

France topped the list with 1.83 children, Romania was the second with 1.80 children. Czechia followed Turkey with 1.71 children as Denmark was fifth with 1.68 children. Sweden, Ireland, Hungary, Slovenia and Slovakia were the other five countries of the Top-10 list.

Malta sat at the bottom of the list with the lowest fertility rate of 1.13 children.

The highest age specific fertility rate, back in 2001, was in the 20-24 age group in the country with 144 per 1,000. However, in 2021, this rate was in the 25-29 age group with 113 per 1,000. This showed that fertility occurred at a later age of the woman.

“Adolescent fertility rate, which means the average number of live births per 1,000 women in 15-19 age group, decreased,” said TÜİK in its data.

This rate, which was 49 per 1,000 in 2001, was 13 per 1,000 in 2021.

When births by birth order were analyzed, it was seen that some 35.8 percent of births were mother’s first birth. Some 32.2 percent were second and 18.2 percent were third, with 13.1 percent being fourth and above in 2021.

The data also showed that the mean age of the mothers giving birth was 29.1 in 2021. This age was 26.7 in 2001.

The highest mean age of mother at birth of first child was in Istanbul with 28.4. Istanbul was followed by the Central Anatolian province of Eskişehir, the northern provinces of Rize, Trabzon and Artvin with 28 in all.