Efforts afoot to improve contraceptive prevalence rate

Islamabad: The government has allocated Rs1,000 million to the Pakistan Population Fund for expansion and improved coverage of family planning services. Moreover, a PC-I (2021-26) with an estimated cost of Rs2,000 million has been approved for implementation of the National Action Plan for Family Planning in ICT and the federating units. The target is to improve the Contraceptive Prevalence Rate from 34% (2017) to 50% in 2025 and 60% in 2030.

The above data were shared with participants of a national seminar organised by the Ministry of National Health Services Wednesday in connection with ‘Population Week,’ which is being observed from July 11-17 to commemorate ‘World Population Day.’ Pakistan is the world’s 5th most populous country, with a population of over 220 million. It has the highest population growth rate (2.4%) among regional countries, which means an addition of over 3 million people every year.

Officials from various government ministries and departments, representatives of the UN agencies, INGOs, NGOs, partner organisations, and health and population professionals attended the seminar, which had Special Adviser to the Prime Minister on Health Dr. Faisal Sultan as guest speaker.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Faisal Sultan expressed concern over Pakistan’s explosive population growth burdening its limited resources such as water, energy, and environment, in addition to affecting the health and well-being of mothers and children. “The government has prioritized the population agenda and is committed to promoting family planning to bring a balance between population growth and local resources,” he stated.

Dr. Faisal emphasised the need to focus on education, especially girls’ education, and general health services and well-being of the population, alongside specific measures to address the unmet need for family planning. “The government will place all required resources to implement this holistic, multi-pronged approach,” he said.

Dr. Syed Atta-ur-Rehman, Additional Secretary at the Ministry of Health, called for reaching out to couples, families, and communities with an innovative approach. Dr. Shabnum Sarfraz presented the salient features of the Population Situation Analysis. The Joint Director of the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics Dr. Dur-e-Nayab shared the impact of population explosion on environment and resources.

Representatives of UNFPA and the World Health Organisation reiterated their commitment to support Pakistan in improving its population indicators and achieving its international commitments (Sustainable Development Goals, FP 2030 and ICPD 35)

The Chairman of the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) Dr. Qibla Ayaz highlighted the role of ulema in propagating the National Population Narrative (Tawazan). He shared that the national narrative of Pakistan on population states, “Parents have the right to freely and responsibly decide the number and spacing of their children to fulfill the fundamental rights of their children and family by maintaining a balance between their family size and resources.

The government and society have the responsibility to facilitate parents to achieve this balance by providing universal access to family planning information and services, thereby achieving sustainable development.” He said the CII has developed recommendations to address minor-age marriages and is determined to bring ‘Minber and Mehrab’ on board for the agenda of family planning and reproductive health. Dr Sabina Durrani, Director General Population at the Ministry of Health, presented the vote of thanks.