73% of newlywed women in Bangladesh conceive unintendedly within first year

A new long‑term study by the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR,B) has revealed that a large majority of women in Bangladesh become pregnant within the first year of marriage — and a significant portion of those pregnancies are unintended.

The findings were unveiled at a research briefing in Dhaka on Wednesday (December 17).

The study, titled “Context and Needs Assessment of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights Among Newly Married Couples in Selected Rural and Urban Areas of Bangladesh,” tracked 666 couples over two years, making it one of the first comprehensive longitudinal analyses of newly married life in the country.

According to the research, 73 percent of women became pregnant within their first year of marriage, with nearly half of those pregnancies occurring before they intended to conceive. The results point to significant gaps in reproductive autonomy and decision‑making among newly married women, particularly in contraceptive use and family planning choices.

The study also sheds light on patterns of spousal control early in marriage, with many women reporting restrictions on mobility, education, employment, and social contacts — factors that may constrain their ability to make independent reproductive choices.

Researchers stress that these findings highlight a critical need for expanded reproductive health services, informed family planning support, and empowerment interventions for newly married women to help ensure that pregnancies are planned, desired, and supported.

The study’s in‑depth approach — involving repeated data collection over two years — provides policymakers and health experts with robust evidence to inform public health strategies that safeguard women’s reproductive rights and wellbeing in the crucial early years of marriage.