15% Of Nigerian Teenage Girls Have Started Childbearing –NPC

Chairman of the National Population Commission (NPC), Hon Nasir Isa Kwarra, has expressed concern over adolescent fertility in Nigeria, revealing that 15% of girls aged 15–19 are either pregnant or have begun childbearing, according to the latest national data.

He disclosed this in Abuja during his remarks at the 2025 State of the World Population Report (SWOP) launch, themed “The Real Fertility Crisis: The Pursuit of Reproductive Health Agency in a Changing World.”

Quoting findings from the 2023–2024 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS), Kwarra said: “Adolescent fertility remains a pressing concern, with 15% of young women aged 15–19 already pregnant or having begun childbearing.”

He noted that while Nigeria’s Total Fertility Rate (TFR) has declined from 5.3 to 4.8 children per woman, key challenges persist. These include the unmet need for family planning, which has risen to 21%, and limited access to modern contraceptives, which now stands at 15% among married women.

“These statistics represent more than numbers—they tell the stories of young girls forced into early motherhood, women unable to space or limit pregnancies, and families striving to make reproductive decisions without adequate support,” the NPC Chairman said.

He stressed that the real crisis lies not only in birth rates but in the lack of reproductive agency, especially for young women, and called for a shift in policy focus—from fertility control to rights-based reproductive health access.