A Study of Fertility Patterns of Ever Married Women in Oman

Objective: To examine the relation between age, education, residence and fertility rate and change in fertility rate between 1994/95 and 1999/2000. Methods: The data for the study was extracted from the Oman National Health Survey, 2000. The birth histories data was used to extract data on woman years and births in the periods 1990 to 1994 and 1995 to 2000. Results: The marital fertility rate in 1999/2000 was 7.12 births. The rates for rural and urban dwellers were 8.07 and 6.75 respectively in 1999/2000.Corresponding rates in 1994/95 (8.65, 8.30 and 9.69 respectively) were significantly higher than those in 1999/2000 for all categories, indicating a reduction in rates. In both periods the higher the education level of the mother the lower her fertility. Conclusion: Educationwas a strong determinant of fertility. This study confirms that the higher the education of the woman the lower her fertility and that fertility is on the decline in Oman.