The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) representative in Uganda Dr. Gift Malunga has revealed that the declining birth rates among families in the country has been linked to the cost of living, gender inequality and future anxieties amongst couples across the country.
“The issue is lack of choice, not desire, with major consequences for individuals and societies. That is the real fertility crisis, and the solution lies in responding to what people say they need: paid family leave, affordable fertility care, and supportive partners” she said.
Dr Malunga made the remarks while unveiling the central finding of UNFPA’s 2025 State of World Population report at the Government media centre on Tuesday in Kampala.
“At UNFPA, we believe that every individual has the right to have the number and spacing of children they desire without coercion or force. We urge governments to invest in health, education, skills development and supportive policies such as parental leave, and access to sexual and reproductive health information and services, to enable informed and voluntary reproductive choices” Dr Malunga added.
According to the report, more than half of respondents cited economic issues as barriers to having children, while one-in-five people said they felt pressured to have children when they did not want to. One in three adults experienced an unintended pregnancy.
The report further urges governments to empower people to make reproductive decisions freely by; investing in affordable housing, decent work, parental leave, and the full range of reproductive health services and reliable information and for societies to address all the ways that gender inequality undermines people’s family choices.
Drawing on academic research and new data from a UNFPA/YouGov survey spanning 14 countries, the report reveals that one in five people globally expect not to have the number of children they desire due to economic and social barriers, rather than a lack of interest in parenthood.
First launched globally on June 10 2025, the report emphasizes that the real fertility crisis is not overpopulation or under population, but rather the inability of individuals to realise their desired fertility goals due to lack of reproductive agency.
