Fertility, marriage, migration, and household transformation in Nepal

Abstract

Family change in Nepal has occurred rapidly in recent decades mainly after the trend of modern social development and increased mobility for sustaining livelihood. Women’s growing economic participation, population ageing, and migration have contributed to changes in family structure in Nepal. This article examines these changes from a sociological perspective using secondary data available from the Nepal Demographic and Health Surveys 2011 and 2022, and the Nepal Living Standards Surveys III (2010/11) and IV (2022/23). It uses a comparative design to examine long-term trends in fertility, marriage, mortality, household size, migration, and women’s involvement in work. The findings of this analysis show that family life in Nepal has changed in several important ways reflecting a major transformation. Firstly, fertility has declined significantly, the age at first marriage has increased noticeably, and infant and child mortality have decreased significantly. Household size has become smaller, while the number of female-headed households has increased indicating a shift in family formation patterns in Nepal. Internal and international migration have expanded rapidly over the past two decades. Remittances have become an important source of household income in the present context. Migration has also increased the responsibilities of women and older family members who remain at home because of the absence of younger family members. The older population is growing because of changes in family composition and a family dynamic. Family structure, living arrangements with mobility, and caregiving practices are changing in response to demographic and social change. However, existing family ties and responsibilities remain strong because traditional kinship values, practices and bounds continue to shape family life in the modern context.