Children vital for pleasant life: Gallup

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ISLAMABAD: According to a Gilani Research Foundation survey carried out by Gallup Pakistan, 85% believe that having children is very important for a pleasant life.

This is a slight change from 9 years back, in 2001; a similar Gallup and Gilani poll had found that 90% believed that children were essential to lead a happy life.

In two different surveys, a nationally representative sample of men and women from across the country were asked the following question: In your opinion how important are having children for a pleasant life? In 2010 85% say it very important, 13% believe important to some extent, 1% consider children to be not important at all. 2% gave no response.

The comparable figures in response to the same question in 2001 were: 90% said children are very important, 8% important to some extent and 2% not important at all. A detailed analysis of the recent data showed that more of the ruralites (89%) believe that children are very important for leading a pleasant life as compared to their urban counter parts (79%).

There was no significant difference in the opinion by gender. It can also be seen that with age the perception that children are important for a pleasant life increases. 82% of the under 30 and 90% of over 51 years believed in this notion.