ABSTRACT
A large body of literature exists in South Africa on levels and trends of fertility. However, most of these studies employ indirect demographic techniques to derive estimates of fertility from census and household survey data (Sibanda and Tukufu, 1999; Stats SA, 2010; Udjo, 2005). This is mainly due to the perceived poor state of vital registration data. Although there is general agreement about fertility trends in the country, there remain conflicting views about levels of fertilty (Moultrie and Dorrington, 2004; Moultrie and Timaeus, 2003; Udjo, 2005). The indirect estimation methodologies used to derive fertility rates from data collected in censuses and surveys require adjustment to the data, resulting in conflicting estimates of fertility. A reliable birth registration system should resolve some of the inconsistencies in fertility estimation, as it requires no adjustment.
