Socioeconomic inequality in teenage pregnancy in Papua New Guinea: A decomposition analysis

Abstract Background: Teenage pregnancy is a global public health issue, and it poses a serious threat to the health and socioeconomic status of mothers and their newborn children. Although Papua New Guinea (PNG) has recorded one of the highest teenage pregnancy rates among Asia-Pacific countries, no study has been conducted on socioeconomic inequality in teenage pregnancy in this country. Therefore, this study aimed to access socioeconomic inequality in teenage pregnancy and its contributing factors in PNG. Methods: Data for this cross-sectional study were obtained from the 2016–2018 Papua New Guinea Demographic and Health Survey. The analytical sample consisted of 2,874 girls aged 15–19 years. We employed Erreygers normalized concentration index (ECI) and concentration curves to measure and depict socioeconomic inequality in teenage pregnancy. Decomposition analysis was likewise performed to identify the contributions of determinants to the observed inequality. Results: Weighted ECI for teenage pregnancy was −0.059 (P < 0.01), thereby indicating that teenage pregnancy in PNG is disproportionately concentrated among poor girls. Decomposition analysis suggested that education level (90.5%), wealth index (38.6%), and region (11.1%) are the main determinants explaining the pro-poor socioeconomic inequality in teenage pregnancy. Conclusions: A pro-poor socioeconomic inequality of teenage pregnancy was present in PNG. This inequality may be alleviated by such interventions as ensuring that teenage girls receive education; implementing poverty alleviation projects, eliminating child, early, and forced marriages; and improving geographical accessibility to health facilities on contraceptive services.