(MENAFN- Muscat Daily) There has been a drastic fall in the birth rate among Omanis and the reason behind this are socio-economic changes like independent living increasing expenses and not having people to care for babies of working parents.
The period from January to November in 2014 has seen the number fall by 24 per cent compared to the same period in the previous year.
An expert has said that this could have a ripple effect on the country's fertility rate. Also more and more young women are delaying having a child and births to older women are on the rise figures from the Ministry of Health (MoH) show.
As per MoH statistics the number of births saw a steady rise before 2014 with a five per cent increase in 2011 over 2010. It grew seven per cent in 2012 over 2011 and in 2013 it increased 9.13 per cent over 2012. This has been attributed to improved healthcare and social services.
The total fertility rate and crude birth rate have also been on the upswing. The total fertility rate grew from 3.3 in 2009 to 3.9 in 2013 while the crude birth rate went up from 29.47 in 2009 to 33.8 (per 1000 population) in 2013.
Dr Moeness Moustafa Alshishtawy planning advisor Oman Medical Specialty Board (OMSB) told Muscat Daily that the number of women in Oman who gave birth dropped in 2014 compared to 2013.
'This fall in birth rate will induce drop in Oman's total fertility rate which was considered one of the highest in the world until a short time back. It is observed that both birth and total fertility rates were constantly increasing in Oman during the period 2005-13. The reason was improvement in health services and socio-economic conditions during the Renaissance era that has led to better survival rates of children who became mature adults by the beginning of the 21st century.'
Dr Alshishtawy further said that the number of women in their prime childbearing years has been growing since then and continued to produce the second generation of the Omani Renaissance. 'The notable decline that has happened last year can be attributed largely to the economic conditions. New Omani families now prefer to live independently. Living expenses even for those families in which both partners have jobs are costly. In most of the cases it is hard for these young families to find someone to take care of the baby when the parents are at work.'
He however said that the fall in birth rate should not be a cause of concern and should improve once the economy and social services get better.
'The important thing about these statistics is the broad shift that is expected if we looked at the ages of mothers who gave birth last year. More Omani women are delaying pregnancy often past their prime childbearing years. So while the teenage birthrate is dropping substantially and the birthrate for women in their 20s is declining as well births among older women are on the rise. This will necessitate an attention from health authorities in Oman for particular reasons.'
The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) office in Oman did not comment on the latest data but said that it continues to provide technical assistance to support the government in the collection and analysis of data to project population trends and assure government planning is based on informed decisions.
'UNFPA supports the government in achieving its goal of a healthy family growing that includes birth spacing to take the needs and aspirations of both parents into consideration and regulate women fertility safely and effectively by conceiving when desired remain free of diseases disabilities or death associated with reproduction and bear and raise healthy children' said a spokesperson from UNFPA Oman.
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