Fertility behaviour of working women in Saudi Arabia: a special case of King Saud University, Riyadh.

Fertility levels and their determinants in Saudi Arabia have not been studied sufficiently for formulating family policy, although some attention has been paid to rapid fertility transitions in the context of socioeconomic and cultural change. This study focused on the fertility of a particular occupational category in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to assess determinants of fertility, measured as the number of children. The sample was drawn from the King Saud University staff - ever-married Saudi Arabian women. Results found that proximate factors (age, age at first marriage, intended number of children, length of marriage and contraceptive use) were significant in predicting fertility behaviour, whereas geographic, social and economic factors were insignificant. Thus, the fertility behaviour of this occupational group seems unique. This might be due to the special characteristics and lifestyle of this particular occupational group. The effect of the intended number of children on the actual number signified the fertility behaviour of this group of women. This, expectedly, should improve the influence of social and economic factors on fertility behaviour, in the future. Thus, advocates, policies and programmes (population and public health) at the societal and familial levels, should consider the demographic change in the social and economic context.

Components and public health impact of population growth in the Arab world.

The Arab world, which consists of the 22 member states of the Arab League, is undergoing a rapid transition in demographics, including fertility, mortality, and migration. Comprising a distinctive geographic region spread across West Asia and North East Africa and unified by the Arabic language, these states share common values and characteristics despite having diverse economic and political conditions. The demographic lag (high fertility and low mortality) that characterizes the Arab world is unique, but the present trend of declining fertility, combined with the relatively low mortality, brings about significant changes in its population size. This research aimed to: (i) assess the population growth in the Arab world over 3 time periods, (ii) explore its components, and (iii) understand its public health impact. Data from the International Data Base (IDB) of the U.S. Census Bureau for 3 time periods (1992, 2002, and 2012) in 21 countries of the Arab world were analyzed by dividing them into four geographic sectors, namely, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), West Asia, Maghreb, and the Nile Valley African Horn. The population of the Arab world has grown considerably due to both natural growth and migration. The immigration is pronounced, especially into resource-intensive GCC nations, not only from East Asian and Central African countries but also from resource-thrifty (limited-resource) Arab nations. The migrations within, as well as outside, the Arab world reveal an interesting demographic phenomenon that requires further research: migration flows and trends. However, the transformations in public health statistics related to mortality-the impact of demographic changes-depict a new era in the Arab world.

Population distribution and household conditions in Saudi Arabia: reflections from the 2010 Census.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the largest nation in the Arabian Peninsula is divided into 13 regions, which are of different development levels in terms of both population and public utility infrastructure. More than the other regions, population is high in Al-Riyadh, Makkah Al-Mokarramah, and the Eastern Region, due to urbanization. The current analysis of census results is aimed at understanding (i) regional variations in population and households and (ii) house ownership, type of housing, and housing infrastructure. Saudi Arabia's population is 26,090,555, living in 4,655,127 households with higher concentration in Al-Riyadh, Makkah Al-Mokarramah, and the Eastern Region. One-fourth of the households are in Makkah Al-Mokarrammah while another one-fourth in Al-Riyadh. Households are small with 6 persons in each. The proportion of households in own houses is less than half - mostly Saudi households. Households in the Kingdom live in apartments, traditional houses, villas or floor in a villa with differing proportions across regions and between Saudi and non-Saudi. While apartments are the major type of housing (major regions), traditional houses (Jazan, Al-Baha, Hail, and Aseer regions) and villas (Al-Riyadh region) still exist that are built by concrete (less than four-fifths), block/brick (less than one-fifth), mud (rare), and stone (rare) with varying regional proportions. Infrastructure - electricity, water, and sewage - vary across regions. The major source of electricity is public station followed by private station and private generators. Water source is mainly the public water inside the pipe unit but catchment tank water and well water are used. Three types of sewage system are prevalent in the Kingdom - public sewage, ditch sewage, and private sewage. An inequitable distribution of population across regions shows urbanization, causing an emergence of the modern housing sector influencing house ownership. Developed regions have less ownership, more rentals and office quarters, thus, presuming that development level and migration status are driving house ownership. The impact of infrastructural variations is difficult to interpret as such variations affect the interest of the public sector and customers. A lesser dependence on the public sector requires caution when assessing the situation and when creating policies and provisions to improve quality of life.