Abstract

RODRIGUEZ GOMEZ, Grisell. Fertility in Cuba from the end of the 20th to the beginning of the 21st century. Rev Cubana Salud Pública [online]. 2008, vol.34, n.1. ISSN 0864-3466.

Fertility in Cuba has had historically low levels, particularly since 1978 when fertility levels began declining in a permanent way. Since 1970, the fertility pattern has been characterized by a markedly early structure, mainly adolescent fertility. From 1990 to 2005, the declining level was kept whereas the structure or pattern tended to vary. As a result two behaviors were observed: firstly, a tendency to marked decrease from 1990 to 1995 and secondly, certain fluctuations with a tendency to stability till 2005. The highest fertility decrease occurred in the period from 1990 to 1996. On the other hand, the fertility pattern showed a higher prevalence of older age groups over 30 years and lower incidence of teenagers (except for pregnancies). The fertility levels kept slightly higher in non-working women and in countryside residents, and besides, it was observed that although education was pretty homogeneous, women graduated from the university exhibited higher fertility levels. Likewise, the fertility behavior was assessed in the various regions of the country, noting that there were differences in terms of structure and level

Keywords : Fertility; tendencies; Cuba.