The Fertility Transition in an Iranian District: A Comparison between Shiraz City and Its Surrounding Villages

Amandine Lebugle, Institut National d'Études Démographiques (INED)

The aim of this communication is to present the fertility decline and its determinants in an Iranian district (Shiraz), with a comparison between urban and rural areas. At the national level, different studies showed that the fertility decline principally occurred on the one hand after the revolution and on the other hand firstly in urban areas and a little bit after in rural areas. The evolution of different factors like the increase in the use of contraception, with a regard of the family planning, the increase in age at first marriage, the decline of the infant mortality rate, the increase in the literate rate (especially for the women), etc. are the main elements which explain the fertility decline in Iran. But is the pattern of the fertility transition in Iran the same in all the country? Is it the same in urban and rural areas? Are the determinants of the fertility decline the same? With having a particular view on one district, Shiraz, we will try to answer at those questions. After having a cross sectional view of the fertility decline in Shiraz and its surrounding, we will show the change in the fertility behavior which occurred in the women’s life cycle. Then we will present the different elements, which can explain the fertility decline: the intermediate variables, structural variables and motivation variables.