Local context and marital fertility in Burkina Faso: a multilevel longitudinal analysis

Bruno D. Schoumaker, Université Catholique de Louvain

In this study, we use a unique multilevel longitudinal data set to test new hypotheses on the effects of community-level variables on marital fertility in Burkina Faso. The two surveys used in this paper contain detailed retrospective information on both women of reproductive age and on the communities (villages, towns) in which they lived at every point in time. This allows us to take into account time-varying community-level variables in explaining individual fertility behaviour. We also propose a new method for multilevel longitudinal analyses of birth histories, based on the Rodriguez-Cleland model of marital fertility. We expect the degree of fertility control to vary significantly across communities and to be related to community-level characteristics such as the availability of health facilities, the availability of employment opportunities and the mechanization of agriculture.