Erdogan pushes for ‘natural’ births amid Turkey’s high C-section rate

Turkey’s health ministry has fined more than 100 obstetrician-gynaecologists for carrying out cesarean sections, suspending them from duty and forcing them to undergo training.

The country has the highest rate of C-section births among the OECD’s 38 nations, according to the last available data from 2023, with around 615 such procedures out of every 1,000 live births that year.

Medical professionals said C-sections were more time-efficient for medical staff – 30 minutes, versus 12 hours for a traditional delivery – and lowered the risk of legal action over complications, ensuring a guarantee of safety for both the doctor and the woman.

Last year, the Turkish government began a campaign to tackle falling birth rates under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s “Decade of the Family” initiative that has seen it move to exert greater control over how women give birth.

Erdogan, a pious Muslim who is pushing for women to have so-called natural births, wants to address Turkey’s record number of elective C-section births, with his government in April 2025 banning such procedures at private healthcare facilities without medical justification.

According to Turkish media, more than 100 doctors have been fined for performing C-sections, citing figures provided by medical associations across the country, sparking a backlash from healthcare professionals.