War, peace, and fertility in Angola

Abstract

Using data from a nationally representative survey conducted in 1996, some two years after the end of a major outbreak of war, we examine the impact of war on the timing of recent births and war-related differences in reproductive preferences in Angola. We find evidence of a wartime drop and a postwar rebound in fertility, but these trends vary greatly, depending on the type and degree of exposure to war and on women's socioeconomic characteristics. At the same time, variations by parity are nonsignificant. In fertility preferences, the relative antinatalism of Angola's most modernized urban area stands out, but outside this area, differences between areas that were more and less affected by war are also noticeable. We offer interpretations of our findings and outline their implications for Angola's demographic future and demographic trends in similar settings.