Children as Investment: Religion, Money, and Muslim Migrants' Experiences of Assisted Reproduction in Aotearoa New Zealand (NZ)

Children are valued in all societies although the specific framing of that value differs. Several societies frame the value of children through the lens of investment. For instance, children are worth having and financially and emotionally investing in because children may grow up to be economically productive citizens offering financial and emotional support to aging parents. Drawing on interviews with 18 Muslim participants in Aotearoa New Zealand, we show that the act of investing in children is emotional, financial and religious. However, while would-be-parents talked most strongly about children being a form of religious investment for the future, investment as money was forced upon participants as they engaged with assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs). We explore how Muslim women and couples navigate terrain around children as investment showing a tangible tension between investment as money and investment as accruing religious capital. We thus develop the concept of children as religious investment to better understand Muslims' journeys through ARTs.