Turkey’s fertility rate falls slightly in 2013

ISTANBUL

The fertility rate in Turkey fell in 2013 to an average of 2.07 children per woman, with the southeastern province of Şanlıurfa being the most “productive” province, according to statistics from the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK).

The average fertility rate, which is the average number of live births that a woman has, decreased slightly last year from 2.09 children in 2012.

Şanlıurfa more than doubled the 2013 average of 2.07, with an average of 4.31 children. The southeastern province of Şırnak followed with an average of 4.08, followed by Ağrı with 3.9 and Siirt with 3.66.

The Thracian province of Kırklareli had the lowest average fertility rate at 1.43 children per woman, while Eskişehir and Edirne followed with averages of 1.46, and Kütahya and Çanakkale both had averages of 1.5 children.

According to the TÜİK data, the highest age specific fertility rate, which means the average number of live births per 1,000 women in a certain age group, was in the 25-29 age range.

The average number of live births was 128 per 1,000 women in the 25-29 age range in 2013, a slight rise from 125 in 2009.

The teenage fertility rate saw a drop, with the number of live births at 28 per 1,000 women in the 15-19 age range in 2013, a decrease from 37 per 1,000 women in 2009.

While the total number of births by women aged under 25 dropped, the largest increase in the number of births was seen among women in the 30-34 age range. The total number of children
born in this age group rose to 306,524 in 2013, up from 244,004 in 2009.