Accelerating Fertility Decline to Trigger the Demographic Dividend in Rwanda

KEY MESSAGES

1. Accelerating fertility decline from the current level of 4.2 births per woman will lower the dependency burden and open the window of opportunity for the country to harness the demographic dividend.

2. Rwanda can build on its exceptional success in reducing birth rates between 2005 and 2010 with a focus on:

• Improving quality, outreach and impact of family planning services by increasing uptake of long-acting contraceptives and reaching young people.
• Keeping girls in school by improving progression to secondary school, and ensuring universal access to age-appropriate sexuality education and contraception.
• Stepping up interventions to reduce child mortality with a focus on reducing new-born mortality.