UNFPA: Financial, Health, and Climate Fears Drive Global Decline in Fertility Rates
The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) has highlighted that financial pressures, health concerns, gender rights setbacks, global conflicts, and climate change fears are preventing people worldwide from achieving their desired family sizes.
These findings were shared by UNFPA Executive Director Dr. Natalia Kanem during a World Population Day event on July 17, 2025, at the Government House in Bauchi State, Nigeria. Represented by UNFPA’s Gender/Reproductive Health Analyst Deborah Tabara, Kanem stated: “The real fertility crisis is a lack of reproductive agency. Young people are often unable to create the families they envision, yet they are blamed for declining fertility rates and expected to solve them.”
The UNFPA’s 2025 State of World Population Report, based on a survey of 14,000 people across 14 countries including Nigeria, India, and the United States, revealed that one in five individuals under 50 expect to have fewer children than desired, while nearly one-third of those over 50 reported having fewer children than hoped. Key barriers include:
Financial Limitations: 39% cited unaffordable housing, job insecurity (21%), and childcare costs (18%) as obstacles to parenthood.
Future Anxieties: 19% noted fears about climate change, wars, and pandemics.
Gender Inequality: 13% of women and 8% of men highlighted unequal domestic labor, with 19% facing family pressure to limit family size.
Health Barriers: Infertility (14% in Nigeria) and limited maternal care access (14%) restrict choices
Kanem emphasized: “Let’s listen to what young people want and need. Let’s build the conditions that empower them to make choices freely and build hopeful futures.” She cautioned against coercive policies like restricting contraception, which increase unintended pregnancies (reported by one in three respondents) and unsafe abortions.
UNFPA advocates for rights-based solutions, including affordable housing, paid parental leave, universal contraception access, and inclusive policies for LGBTQIA+ and single individuals.
In Nigeria, with an adolescent fertility rate of 14.1 per 1,000 women aged 15–19, systemic challenges like limited healthcare and social pressures exacerbate the crisis. Kanem urged: “Only shared solutions grounded in human rights can address the realities of our demographically diverse world.” UNFPA pledged continued partnership with Bauchi State to develop youth-focused programs, aligning with the 2025 World Population Day theme: “Empowering Young People to Create the Families They Want in a Fair and Hopeful World.”
