Cause for concern as nation’s fertility rate sees rapid decline

PETALING JAYA: Malaysians are not giving birth to enough babies to replenish the population amid a rapid decline in the country’s fertility rate.

According to the Statistics Department, 13 states and federal territories have total fertility rates (TFRS) that have dropped below the replacement level of 2.1 babies for every female aged 15 to 49.

The TFR is the average number of children a woman has in her lifetime. The replacement level is the fertility rate at which a population exactly replaces itself from one generation to the next.

Kuala Lumpur and Penang are the worst hit, with fertility rates of 1.2 children each, followed by Sabah (1.4).

“Sabah recorded the fastest declining TFR, with 5.5 children in 1980 and 1.4 children in 2022,” chief statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said in a video announcing Malaysia’s population trends.

Terengganu, Kelantan and Pahang are the only states still producing enough babies to replenish their populations.

“Only Terengganu, Kelantan and Pahang are recording a TFR above the replacement level,” Mohd Uzir said.

Terengganu has the country’s highest fertility rate at 2.9, followed by Kelantan (2.7) and Pahang (2.1).

Mohd Uzir said Malaysia’s overall TFR began to drop below 2.1 in 2013, adding that the decline could be seen across ethnic groups.

“Between 1980 and 2022, the TFR for all main ethnic groups declined. The trend of TFR for all ethnic groups except for Malays is below the replacement level.

“The Malay ethnic group recorded the highest TFR of 2.1 in 2022, while the Chinese ethnic group recorded the lowest TFR at 0.8 children for every woman aged 15 to 49,” he said.

The declining fertility rates mean that the average size of a Malaysian family has also got smaller.

A household in the country in 1970 would typically have more than five members (5.5).

Now, the average household size is 3.7 persons.

Perlis has the smallest household size at 3.1 persons, while Kelantan has the biggest at 4.8.

Universiti Putra Malaysia’s Malaysian Research Institute on Ageing (Myageing) senior research officer Chai Sen Tyng said factors contributing to higher reproductive rates in certain states may be linked to socio-economic influences such as women’s level of education and a change in values.

“I tend to believe it is because the population holds on to traditional religious views, where they believe children is a gift from God,” he said.

He added that the reason people have children changes over time.

“The reason why the poor have more children might be due to a lack of family planning, but the reality is that in agricultural societies, having more children means more hands to help and as insurance for old age,” he said.

Chai added that women’s education levels influence fertility rates as educated women have options and may not want to be tied down to childbearing or child rearing.

“Women don’t want to get married and get trapped if they get the short end of the stick.

“Educated women have options and I think this is key. Men have to realise this,” he said.

However, Chai said that the main reason for declining fertility rates is the decline or delay in marriages.

“It is not all on married couples,” he said.

According to the Statistics Department, the current average age of marriage for men is 31, while women typically get married at age 29 – compared with 1970, when women got married at age 22 and men at age 26.

Chai also said the main reason couples decide to have fewer children is changing values and beliefs, not the high cost of living and raising children.

“To say people have fewer kids because of the high cost of child-rearing sends the wrong message.

“Many modern parents keep trying to buy the most expensive items for their children when it is primarily a consumer trap.

“It is natural to want only the best for our children, but what kids want most is our attention and time,” he said.

He added that higher-educated households tend to have fewer children, which may be influenced by competing career demands or concerns over future higher education costs.

He said the government could offer cash incentives, provide better family or parental leave, and make more childcare services available or accessible to stabilise the fertility rate.

Instilling positive family values, such as encouraging kinship, could also encourage couples to have more children for the right reasons, he added.

Malaysia’s TFR is the third lowest in Asean after Singapore and Thailand, at 1.6 children each.