The Negligible Effect of Free Contraception on Fertility: Experimental Evidence from Burkina Faso *

Pascaline Dupas, Seema Jayachandran, Adriana Lleras-Muney and Pauline Rossi
Additional contact information
Seema Jayachandran: Princeton University
Adriana Lleras-Muney: UCLA - University of California [Los Angeles] - UC - University of California
Pauline Rossi: CREST - Centre de Recherche en Économie et Statistique - ENSAI - Ecole Nationale de la Statistique et de l'Analyse de l'Information [Bruz] - GENES - Groupe des Écoles Nationales d'Économie et Statistique - X - École polytechnique - IP Paris - Institut Polytechnique de Paris - ENSAE Paris - École Nationale de la Statistique et de l'Administration Économique - GENES - Groupe des Écoles Nationales d'Économie et Statistique - IP Paris - Institut Polytechnique de Paris - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, GENES - Groupe des Écoles Nationales d'Économie et Statistique, ENSAE Paris - École Nationale de la Statistique et de l'Administration Économique - GENES - Groupe des Écoles Nationales d'Économie et Statistique - IP Paris - Institut Polytechnique de Paris

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Abstract: We conducted a randomized trial among 14,545 households in rural Burkina Faso to test the oft-cited hypothesis that limited access to contraception is an important driver of high fertility rates in West Africa. We do not find support for this hypothesis. Women who were given free access to modern contraception for three years did not have lower birth rates; we can reject even modest effects. We cross-randomized additional interventions to address inefficiencies that might depress demand for free contraception, specifically misperceptions about the child mortality rate and social norms. Free contraception did not significantly influence fertility even in combination with these interventions.

Keywords: Family planning; Demographic transition; Social norms; Randomized trial (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-dem and nep-exp
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Published in American Economic Review, 2025, 115 (8), pp.2659-2688. ⟨10.1257/aer.20241305⟩

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Related works:
Journal Article: The Negligible Effect of Free Contraception on Fertility: Experimental Evidence from Burkina Faso (2025)
Working Paper: The Negligible Effect of Free Contraception on Fertility: Experimental Evidence from Burkina Faso (2024)
Working Paper: Negligible Effect of Free Contraception on Fertility: Experimental Evidence from Burkina Faso (2024)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:hal-05272203

DOI: 10.1257/aer.20241305

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