Childbearing Intentions and Financial Aspirations of Striving Young Adults in Kampala, Uganda.

Charles Katulamu, University of Michigan

Scholarship on childbearing has presented a robust body of evidence on how parents’ income shapes their childbearing processes and how the presence of children impacts the work dynamics of parents, significantly distorting women’s economic participation outside the home. This paper pivots to investigate the impact of childbearing intentions on the financial aspirations of young adults. Using data from 96 semi-structured in-depth interviews collected at two time points, I reveal how young adults strive to achieve their financial aspirations amidst their intended childbearing plans. By showing how childbearing threatens individual financial aspirations, their children’s well-being, and how childbearing motivates individuals to work toward their financial aspirations, plus how women aspire for an economic model that befits both their financial and childbearing dynamics, I expound on the literature on childbearing intentions, the family, and work dynamics.