The world’s peak population may be smaller than expected
New evidence suggests Africa’s birth rates are falling fast
“I have ten children,” says Rahama Sa’ad squatting outside her shack on the outskirts of Kano, the biggest city in northern Nigeria. “It’s the will of God,” she explains, as chickens, children and grandchildren scramble around her. In northern Nigeria big families are easy to find. Abdulkadar Dutse, a local businessman in Kano, is one of 35 siblings split among the four wives of his father.
This article appeared in the Middle East & Africa section of the print edition under the headline “Africa’s slowing baby boom ”
From the April 8th 2023 edition
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