Education and reproductive empowerment: How schooling shapes women’s contraceptive use and fertility intention in LMICs

Abstract

This study investigates the impact of women’s education on reproductive empowerment, with a focus on contraceptive use and pregnancy wantedness in 52 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Using data from the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) and applying a sister fixed-effects model, the analysis isolates the effects of education while controlling for unobserved family background factors. The findings reveal that education improves women’s reproductive autonomy by increasing contraceptive uptake and reducing unwanted pregnancies. Furthermore, education improves exposure to family planning information through mass media and healthcare facilities, further facilitating informed reproductive choices. Besides, the effects are not evenly distributed—women in rural areas, from low-income households, or with less educated spouses benefit less from education, pointing to persistent structural inequalities. These results contribute to public policy debates by providing robust evidence that investments in women’s education are a powerful lever for improving reproductive health outcomes, but must be paired with targeted interventions to ensure that gains are equitably shared across socio-economic groups.