Kyrgyzstan has undergone great societal change since gaining independence from the
USSR in 1991. While government and economic shifts have affected many aspects of
daily life, what effect have policy changes had on family formation and family planning
trends, if any at all? Using two nationally representative datasets, I discovered that
women in Kyrgyzstan who came of age during the transition entered marriage earlier
than previous cohorts. This unusual pattern holds across diverse populations, and runs
counter to worldwide marriage trends. While this fluctuation might suggest a societal
shift toward more traditional ideals, it coincided with a significant influx of foreign
development support for health reform and family planning services, among other
programs.
While abortion was a primary method of fertility control until 1991, the adoption of
modern contraceptive methods has occurred rapidly across Kyrgyzstan. Over half of the
women surveyed are employing a modern method and a woman’s location of residence,
age at marriage and parity are the strongest predictors of use. Additionally, I found that
unlike research from India and Pakistan, inclusion in traditional, co-residing family
structures had little influence on the likelihood of use. I believe factors such as a highly
educated populace, depressed economic conditions and declining fertility norms
facilitated the rapid acceptance and adoption of modern methods. Yet, when considered
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in the context of shifting marriage trends, Kyrgyzstan represents an unusual and
important case. Contrary to standard patterns in which access to contraception is
associated with marriage and childbearing delays, we witness the reverse in Kyrgyzstan,
at least temporarily. Such findings demand further investigation to determine if the case
of Kyrgyzstan is distinct or portends the potential for change in other post-soviet settings.