How come families from poor countries like Somalia or Bolivia have like 20-30 babies if they can't feed them?

Question

From experience I found out that caucasian people who make an good income of at least 5k a month don't have 20-30 kids so that they can claim them as dependent to get the tax money back.

But how come poor people from bolivia or peru or mexico the parents make $900 a month and they still decide to have like 20-30 kids? why is that?

Answer 1

This is actually a little bit of common sense more then anything. Caucasians have the knowledge of birth control and sexual education and understand the consequences of having children. The poor people you spoke of are not the same type of poor people we have in American or in England or wherever else education is affordable or free. The poor people in most of these countries are also uneducated people. They do not know that having that many kids is not the way it is done. In fact, when the Peace Corps (or any other agency for humanity) goes to these countries, one of the first things they establish are health clinics to take care of babies and children and to educate the poor people about sex and the consequences.

Answer 2

There are lots of different reasons

In most of these countries, Catholicism is the dominant religion. Catholics don't believe in birth control or abortion so-- that really ups the chances of getting pregnant and once you're pregnant... you've got kids! And if that means 20 kids, that's what it means!


Also consider that in these rural/ under developed communities, western medicine isn't always available to pregnant women and new mothers

That means that often times it takes LOTS of pregnancies to come up with children that make it past 5 years old. The infant mortality rate in underdeveloped countries/communities is astronomical compared to modern countries!

So having 20-30 kids is really a crap shoot. By the time one kid is 5, you've already had 3-4 others on the off chance that the 5 year old passes away. And then you repeat that process with the 4 and 3 year olds. Keep having babies and hoping they live but being prepared for when they don't. And when the kids DO live, everyone's shocked...why? Well suddenly there's 20 kids!!!

In MANY cultures, babies aren't given names until they're 4 or 5 years old due to the high infant mortality rate.

Answer 3

This question shows how some just don't understand human nature. Men and women like to have sex no matter what country they live in and since, for the most part they do not have condoms as you note guess what they have babies and then can't take care of them but that does not mean they are going to stop doing what they are doing just because some people don't understand why they do what they do

Answer 4

These families have so many kids (not usually 20-30....) so they can look after the family when they are older. With such a high mortality rate many of their children don't make it to adulthood and the ones who do are paid hardly anything so they want to have a few to ensure they will be supported.

I assume you think that having so many children is why these countries/families are poor. It really isn't - its usually because the government is really corrupt and doesn't look after its people properly, or because it's people aren't properly educated on how to become self sufficient/productive enough to earn a living so they country never grows or develops

Answer 5

Firstly, they don't have a decent education, so forget sex ed.

Secondly, many of the poorer nations have quite strict religious beliefs, that forbid the use of contraceptives, or advise against them. They can also, being quite uneducated, be led to believe that sex can cure various diseases.

For example, in South Africa, there was outrage over men being told that having sex with a virgin could cure you of AIDS.

Many people cannot afford contraception, condoms are either too expensive or of poor quality and you can forget about pharmaceutical drugs like the pill.

Also, the more kids you have, the more hands you can later put to work or send out into the workforce. So daughters can stay home and take care of the kids and sons can help their fathers, or daughters can be married off to wealthier individuals who can help support their family.

Answer 6

First of that is an exageration secondly thinfant mortality rate there is so high that most do not make it to their first birthday and from that many don't reach their second birthday. There is no birth control in many of these foreign remote areas and children continue the community and help on the farm and such. They don't get tax breaks for having children but they don't haveoptions that the so called civilized western world does

Answer 7

Well I'll share something with you I met a very nice man that was in the very same boat as to making 860.00 a month this man had 19 children guess what he some how some way provided for his family... know do I agree with it NO but you cant judge someone Else's lifestyle but there should be something said when they can't provide for there family and struggle for poverty and either there to lazy to were a condom or cant invest the 1.00 that they are...

Answer 8

20 or 30 sounds high. Even 1 if you can't afford to properly care for your child, you should be 'fixed' like a dog or cat. I wonder why people in 3rd world countries have children. You see these save the children commercials where the people are emaciated and have flies all over them and they are lying on the ground too weak to move. Yet, they have children. It must be a lack of education in contraceptives and the horny mammalian instincts to reproduce. Maybe they are too weak to pull out? It is truly sad. $900 a month still sounds high compared to other places in the world.

Answer 9

Wow 20-30 kids i think your numbers are too high

Bolivia, Peru and Mexico have a large Catholic populations

reason one Catholics position on Condoms?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/aids/story/0,7369,1059068,00.html

reason two Catholics position on birth control?
http://www.lisashea.com/lisabase/aboutme/birthcontrol.html

reason three Catholics position on Abortion?
http://catholicism.about.com/cs/prolife/a/abort012003.htm

Answer 10

Its possibly religion related.