Fertility Regulation in Kyrgyzstan: An Evolving Landscape

Fertility regulation in Kyrgyzstan is shifting on a monumental level. As a soviet republic, Kyrgyzstan reported some of the highest crude birth rates and total fertility rates (TFR's) under the pro-natalist initiatives of the USSR. In the period since independence in 1991, considerable economic, political and health system changes have altered the reproductive health landscape. By some estimates, total fertility rates have declined 30% since the early 1990's, but it has been unclear the extent to which this reflected changes in abortion, or contraceptive behavior. Using data from two representative household surveys (the 1997 Demographic & Health Survey and the 2006 Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey), we describe changes in contraceptive use between 1997 and 2006. Abortion figured prominently in fertility regulation programs during the soviet period, and appears to be declining as international organizations and the Kyrgyz government have expanded contraceptive options. But patterns of current fertility regulation reveal regional variations in the use of different methods to regulate fertility. The heterogeneity of fertility regulation behaviors across Kyrgyzstan are described, and social determinants of such variations are explored. Further study of fertility regulation is crucial in this society, which is undergoing change in social norms concerning fertility regulation, and in access to reproductive health resources.