R. Chander

Impact of the Malaysian family planning programme on births: A comparison of matched acceptor and non-acceptor birth rates

Summary The impact of the Malaysian National Family Planning Programme on the birth rate has been estimated by comparing the fertility of a large sample of programme acceptors with that of a matched comparison group of non-acceptors. This method involved use of national identity card numbers to link family planning acceptor and birth registration records. The two groups were matched on the five key variables of month and year of most recent delivery, birth order, and age, race and duration of the mothers marriage. The principal finding is that birth rates among programme acceptors are significantly lower in all six post-acceptance years than in the matched comparison group, and that they altogether experienced 425 fewer births per thousand women than non-acceptors during this period. Results are examined separately for different age, race, parity and marriage duration groups, as well as by year of acceptance, sex of the most recent child, and method adopted. Comparison of this method with a less direct p...