The number of teenage women giving birth in New Zealand has halved in the last decade, according to figures released today by Stats NZ.
In a statement, Stats NZ said there were 1719 births registered to teenage women (aged under 20 years) in 2022, which accounts for around 1 in every 34 births that year.
In 2012, there were 3786 births registered to teenage mothers, which accounted for around 1 in every 16 births.
For every 1000 women in New Zealand aged 15–19, there were 11 births in 2022, down from 25 births in 2012.
Stats NZ said this is a drop of 55%.
Last year, 99% of teenage births were to mothers aged 15–19.
Estimates and projections manager Michael MacAskill says the decreasing number of teenage births coincides with improved education and contraception access.
In 2022 there was a total of 58,887 live births, 228 more than 2021.
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