As global birth rates decline, including Bangladesh’s fertility rate and more young people delay marriage and parenthood, a new UN report reveals that these personal decisions reflect broader systemic failures shaped by economic, social and environmental insecurity, not mere lifestyle trends.
The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), in its flagship publication State of World Population Report 2025, published in Tuesday, presents data from 14 countries across diverse regions, not including Bangladesh, showing that large segments of the global youth population are either delaying or abandoning plans to have children altogether.
The report challenges narratives around “population collapse” and instead urges policymakers to focus on what it calls the real fertility crisis — the inability of millions of individuals to exercise their reproductive rights freely and fully.
“I want children, but it’s becoming more difficult as time passes by. It is impossible to buy or have affordable rent in my city,” said a 29-year-old woman from Mexico.
She added: “I also would not like to give birth to a child in war times and worsened planetary conditions if that means the baby would suffer because of it.”
Another respondent from Paraguay, a 30-year-old male, said: “Bringing a child into the world is only one step. The real challenge is raising them. And for a favourable upbringing, there must be a good environment and adequate infrastructure.”
Millions unable to meet fertility goals
According to the UNFPA-YouGov survey, covering over 14,000 respondents, 32% said they or their partner had experienced an unintended pregnancy.
Additionally, 23% reported having wanted a child but felt unable to do so at their preferred time and over 40% of them ultimately had to give up that desire.
Among those aged 50 and above, 31% said they ended up having fewer children than they ideally wanted and 12% said they had more children than they preferred, indicating a widespread misalignment between fertility intentions and outcomes.
“I have one child but don’t plan on having any more,” said a 29-year-old woman from Zambia.
She further said: “I am unable to do so due to financial instability, precarious employment, unaffordable housing and the high cost of childcare and education.”
For many, the decision is also shaped by social stigma or legal exclusion.
In Azerbaijan, a 26-year-old man named Roman described his struggle for reproductive rights: “Before I bring a child into this world, I have to fight for the right to do so on my own terms — for same-sex marriage, for surrogacy, for adoption rights and parental recognition where I am from,”
“This isn’t just my fight. It’s the fight of billions of young people trapped in systems that deny them the rights and dignity they deserve," he added.
A future shadowed by inequality
The report finds that economic hardship is the single most cited factor affecting people's ability to have children.
Among respondents who said they expected to have fewer children than desired, 39% blamed financial constraints, 21% cited job insecurity, and 19% pointed to housing issues.
Youth voices also highlighted gender-based responsibilities and the struggle for equality within households: “Finding the right partner is important because I believe that raising a child should be a shared responsibility with emotional and financial support from both parents,” said an 18-year-old female respondent from India.
Climate anxiety, social unrest and political instability were also common concerns.
A 24-year-old Belgian, Ilian Sales Segarra, said: “There are enough resources on Earth to sustain everyone and more — they are just distributed terribly... I believe we will be able to do this, which will provide me the privilege of having a child without remorse.”
Meanwhile, a 31-year-old woman from the Philippines shared her frustration: “The future feels bleak despite the measures being taken by the government. Moreover, a lot of policies worldwide are against women’s healthcare. I feel that this pushes us to stay single and have no children.”
Current situation in Bangladesh
Though Bangladesh was not in the list of 14 surveyed countries, the current trends of Bangladesh are not too different from those of other countries.
“I want to have children someday, but not at the cost of my freedom or financial security,” said Samia (pseudonym), a 28-year-old advertising executive in Dhaka to this correspondent.
“I live in a rented flat and my salary barely covers living expenses. How can I think of raising a child in this economy?” she raised her concern.
Her concerns echo those of young people in many countries surveyed by UNFPA.
Nearly 40% of respondents who participated in the survey identified financial barriers as the top reason for not having their desired number of children.
Other concerns included housing, lack of childcare, job insecurity and pessimism about the future, including climate change and social instability, which are also common in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh’s fertility rate, currently around 2.0, has dropped significantly since the 1980s.
In urban areas, particularly among middle-class professionals, delaying or opting out of parenthood is no longer taboo — it’s practical.
“The cost of delivery at a private hospital is now beyond Tk1 lakh,” said Fahim, 30, a private job holder based in Dhaka.
In contrast, rural Bangladesh still sees high rates of early marriage and low contraceptive use, especially among marginalized women.
But this result is fewer than hoped, along with the overachieved fertility and underachieved fertility in Bangladesh.
The UN report also emphasizes that fertility choices are not just about economics, but the gender dynamics play a significant role.
Across all surveyed countries, women were nearly twice as likely as men to cite a partner’s lack of support in housework and childcare as a reason for avoiding more children.
Bangladeshi working women say they are expected to "do it all" — manage their careers, households, in-laws and now parenthood, with little to no structural support.
“There’s no daycare in my office and I can’t afford to quit my job, but after a several months of home office from my pregnancy to child birth, I was bound to quit the job to raise my child with proper care,” said Tithi, a 32-year-old private job holder based in Dhaka.
“Even the idea of having a second child gives me anxiety,” she added.
From fertility rate to fertility rights
Rather than encouraging higher birth rates through incentives or coercion, the report argues for rights-based, people-centered policies that empower individuals to make reproductive choices free from fear, pressure or structural disadvantage.
UNFPA Executive Director Dr Natalia Kanem writes: “Let’s create the circumstances where people who deeply want to experience the joys and rewards of parenting can meet their fertility goals, where they have hope for a better tomorrow that is supportive of their choices and protective of their rights.”
Reason behind parenthood?
The reason to have a child is primarily utilitarian, and of course, there are many more reasons to have a child, or not to have one.
The UNFPA survey asked more than 14,000 respondents to rate the importance of various reasons for and against having children.
Significant variation was found between countries.
When it came to most reasons, respondents in some countries, such as Indonesia and Nigeria, indeed rated preserving one’s family name and assets for future generations and supporting parents in old age quite highly.
Respondents in Indonesia, Morocco and Nigeria also indicated that religious and social obligations are significant reasons for having children; in comparison, respondents in Germany and Sweden found these obligations to be half as important.
However, across the board, respondents in every country reported that joy-the lifelong joy a child brings and the satisfaction that comes from raising a child—as being the most important reason to have a child.
Similarly, there was widespread agreement that the costs associated with child-raising are one of the most significant reasons to weigh against having children.
UNFPA report shows young people globally are rethinking family formation due to economic stress, gender inequality and a bleak outlook on the future.