Islamabad: “Curbing Pakistan’s runaway population growth rate demands a united political front. We need to transcend political differences for greater national cause and all political parties should sign a charter of population” said Senator Sherry Rehman while addressing the inaugural meeting of the Parliamentary Forum on Population (PFP) held after General Election 2024, organized by the Population Council with the support of United Nations Population Fund. She also emphasized on increased investment and stronger legislation on family planning programs which could accelerate Pakistan’s progress across social, economic and environmental areas of sustainable development. “Resources of the country are stretched thin by rapid population growth which hinders achievement of development goals like education, employment opportunities, and access to basic necessities”, she added. She also praised a cross party consensus on population agenda at the PFP and emphasized the need for a harmonious balance between population and resources for the progress of the country.
The Parliamentary Forum on Population (PFP) was launched in March 2020, with the aim to raise parliamentary awareness on population and development, sustain cross-party political commitment and advocate for population stabilization. The Forum has convened nine meetings since its inception to advance the population agenda within the parliament and provincial assemblies.
In her welcome remarks, Dr. Zeba Sathar, Country Director of the Population Council, drew attention to Pakistan’s current fertility trends and the broad impact of population growth on the country’s development indicators. She remarked, “With a 241.5 million population and staggering intercensal growth rate of 2.55%, the Population Census 2023 showed a rapid increase in population which poses a significant challenge to the country’s development as well as underscores the imperative for strong political resolve.” Dr. Sathar emphasized the far-reaching consequences of rapid population growth, highlighting its negative impact on various development indicators. “Six million Pakistani couples are unable to exercise their right to plan families due to lack of availability and access to family planning services. If Pakistan was closer to fertility levels of the rest of the region, it could have saved thousands of mothers from dying, would have fewer out of school children, and have less Pakistanis living in poverty” ” she added.
Former Senator and Secretary General of PFP, Mushahid Hussain Sayed welcomed the newly elected parliamentarians in the Forum. He commended the dedication of the participants to the population agenda and emphasized the Forum’s responsibility in involving the national and provincial assemblies as key players in attaining population planning objectives. He highlighted the importance of prioritizing population issues beyond party affiliations, stating, “Population should be above party line and taken as a national issue. Parliamentarians have a critical role to play in holding governments accountable to improve service delivery of family planning services and ensuring the implementation of their respective party manifestos’ commitments regarding population issues”.
