UNFPA study: son preference still prevalent in Georgia, selective abortions viewed as problematic
By Levan Abramishvili
Friday, September 27
UNFPA carried out qualitative analysis based on focus group discussions with parents of school/preschool children and in-depth interviews with medical personnel and NGO representatives.
Georgia is one of the dozen countries worldwide that has strong statistical evidence of sex imbalances at birth. According to the study, since 1992, deteriorating economic conditions, coupled with strong son preference, low total fertility rates, and access to affordable reproductive technologies have contributed to the increase of imbalance, which lasted for almost 15 years. The trend was mainly caused by sex-selective abortions. However, after 2004, there has been some improvement and in 2016 the ratio reached a normal level. The study seeks to investigate various factors behind such change.
The study reveals that son preference is still prevalent in Georgian society, regardless of the positive trend in sex ratios at birth. There is an elevated awareness of sex-selective abortions in each of the four regions surveyed. Nevertheless, all respondents recognize that while selective abortions have been prevalent in the past, they have since decreased. Perceptions of the phenomenon as a problem vary between the areas.
In Kvemo Kartli and Samtskhe-Javakheti, the respondents did not problematize the practice of sex selection, and stressed the significance of having children for the continuation of family lines, whereas in Kakheti and Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti the prevalent attitudes towards Gender Biased Sex Selection (GBSS) were quite negative.
The study states that econometric analysis shows that the recent reduction in poverty also reflects a decrease in prenatal gender discrimination. Moreover, participants of the focus group discussions highlighted the importance of international migration and remittances as a strategy for coping with limited labor market opportunities in Georgia.
The study also mentions female economic empowerment as a factor in the trend. Labor market dynamics have created new job opportunities for women in banking, retail trade, and other office-related jobs, especially the structural transformation of the economy to the service sector. Such female economic empowerment helps reduce imbalances by promoting the financial independence of women.
The research concludes that enhanced macroeconomic conditions appear to have contributed to decreasing the skewed sex ratio at birth by decreasing family dependence on male children and relaxing fertility decisions. However, little evidence suggests that the current social protection systems have contributed to the normalization of SRB.
Based on the findings, the study suggests several policy recommendations to sustain and further advance the positive trend of sex ratio at a birth reduction in Georgia. The gender bias issue requires a holistic approach involving social, economic, and cultural domains.
The overall direction should be focused on promoting initiatives to further advance poverty reduction, strengthen gender equality and women’s empowerment, as well as overcome gender stereotypes, by encouraging the equal value of both daughters and sons.
“The overall direction should be focused on promoting initiatives to further advance poverty reduction, strengthen gender equality and women’s empowerment, as well as overcome gender stereotypes, by encouraging the equal value of both daughters and sons,” the UNFPA study says.
As mentioned in the study, sex-selective abortions have been a problem for decades, putting Georgia on the list with other less-developed countries. Even though the positive trend is observed, there are still thousands of sex-selective abortions happening each year. According to another recent survey of UNFPA and World Bank, as a result of selective abortion in 1990-2010, around 25,000 female babies were aborted.