How families in northern Nigeria are rewriting the rules on children

NPR | By Emmanuel Akinwotu

Published April 12, 2026 at 5:37 PM EDT

Even in Africa's most populous country, attitudes about family size oare starting to shift. The change in thinking is most striking in Nigeria's Muslim and conservative north.

Emmanuel Akinwotu

Emmanuel Akinwotu is an international correspondent for NPR. He joined NPR in 2022 from The Guardian, where he was West Africa correspondent.

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