Repression and Revival of the Family Planning Program and its Impact on the Fertility Levels and Demographic Transition in the Islamic Republic of Iran

The aim of this paper is to review the performance of the family planning program initiated in 1989 in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Following a quick look at the family planning program that existed before the Revolution (1967-1979), the paper documents the fate of the program during the first decade after the Islamic Revolution (1979-1988) and its official revival in 1989. It is shown that the provision of family planning services was not banned during the period 1979-1989. Because of the marked rise in the education, urbanization and modernization levels of Iranian society, and thanks to the support of the religious and political leaders, the revived program faced little public resistance and would seem to have already achieved all of the demographic and health targets set for it . By 1997, contraceptive prevalence rate had risen above 70 percent, most couples were using a mix of modern methods, including male and female sterilization, and the traditional gap between urban and rural areas had largely disappeared. Moreover, about 85 percent of the enormous fertility decline achieved since 1986 would seem to have been due to reduction in material fertility due to contraceptive.