Every week families gather in Kano, Nigeria’s second-largest city, to eagerly watch the hit television program “Gidaan Badamasi,” a comedy-drama that emphasizes the social implications of large families. the new York Times.
Thursday nights are the time when families gather around their small TVs to watch the fictional story of a rich but careless hero who struggles to care for his many children. The presentation highlights the difficulties of raising older children in a society that aims to provide education and employment prospects despite global variations in birth rates, addressing an issue that is highly relevant across Africa, Where a large youth population is growing rapidly.
according to the new York Times According to the report, many African women have far more children than women on other continents: women in Nigeria have an average of more than five children, while American and European women have about 1.5 children, and Chinese women have more than that. is also less. And recent progress in reducing child mortality in Africa means that more of them than ever survive to adulthood.
But Africa’s birth rate is also gradually falling. It has declined by about 38 percent in the last 60 years. This is mainly due to the changing attitudes towards education, economics and family size reflected in the conversation by shows like “Gidaan Badamasi”, one of the biggest hits of recent years on the major Hausa-language television channel. Is.
“It’s a very bad habit, raising children who they can’t take care of,” said Sani Ibrahim, 53, a school principal and father of six siblings. NYT.
“It’s a problem for me,” he said, “that I have so many children.”
North and Southern Africa have been undergoing a long-term “fertility transition” – their birth rates have declined significantly. But in the rest of Africa, fertility remains mostly high.
“Gidaan Badamasi” had a “huge, immediate” impact, sparking conversations about reducing family size. It succeeded, several viewers told the NYT, where many international organizations had failed.
Nazir Adam Salih, the show’s head writer, said, “You can’t come to this part of the world and say people shouldn’t marry, people shouldn’t have many children, people should take birth control.”
