On Governance and the Demographic Transition

The paper’s main argument is that even where women have more employment opportunities and relevant institutions in place, current fertility trends in Africa and the Middle East may persist if financial institutions lack credibility. The key message is that implementing sound institutions not only contributes to making economic growth more inclusive, but also slows down population growth endogenously. The authors provide a detailed analysis using a mathematical model that considers an overlapping-generations, two-sector model