Federal Office of Statistics
The number of teenage mothers in Germany and worldwide has fallen sharply
Becoming a mother in your teens is becoming increasingly rare in Germany. The numbers have also fallen significantly worldwide – although with large regional differences.
Also fewer teenage mothers worldwide
The Federal Office announced the figures on the occasion of World Day of the Girl on October 11th. The day of action was launched by the United Nations in 2011 to make the concerns of girls visible and to advocate for their opportunities and rights. Globally, statistics also counted fewer teenage mothers. While in 2000 the global average was 64 children per 1,000 young women aged 15 to 19, in 2021 there were 42 newborns, around a third less, as the federal statisticians report with reference to UN figures. There is no international data available yet for 2022.
The number of children born to 15- to 19-year-olds fell from 18.1 million in 2000 to 12.8 million in 2021. While the number of births fell, the number of young women increased over the same period: there were 280 worldwide in 2000 .2 million female adolescents, in 2021 there were 301.7 million.
However, according to the statisticians, there were large regional differences among teenage mothers. Relatively most were in Central Africa in 2021. There were a total of 119 newborns for every 1,000 young women. West Africa followed with 104 newborns. For comparison: in Western Europe there were seven newborns for every 1,000 young women.