Latest ABS data shows teenage birthrates are dropping in Australia but are still the third highest rate in the developed world.
- In Australia in 2014, there were 9,204 babies born to mothers aged 19 and under
- At 13 live births per 1000 this is the lowest rate since 1921 and well down from 16.1 in 2006. In 1970 the rate was 50.9.
- These compare relatively well with the USA (24.2) and the UK (19.7) in 2014 and New Zealand (23.8) in 2013, but poorly with Switzerland at (3.4), Denmark (4.4) and the Netherlands (4.5) (all 2013 data)
There is dramatic variation in the teenage birthrate in different parts of the country.
- In 2008, the ACT recorded the lowest rate at 8 live births to teenage mothers per 1000, and the Northern Territory the highest at 52.2.
- In 2008, births to teenage Indigenous women (2,200 births) accounted for 20% of all births to Indigenous women (11,000 births). In comparison, births to all teenage women accounted for only 4% of all births.
- Rates are highest in remote communities.
Termination
- In the 2008-2009 financial year, 10,264 terminations were performed for those aged 19 and under.
Young women with a stronger attachment to school are more likely to terminate their pregnancies, especially in rural and regional Australia.