Islamabad: Islam permits birth spacing to safeguard the health of women and children, religious scholars and public health experts said on Friday, citing Quranic injunctions and classical scholars who emphasised the importance of gaps between childbirths.
They were speaking at a high level meeting organized by Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination (MoNHSR&C), in collaboration with FP2030, UNFPA, Greenstar, and other stakeholders under the theme “Plan It. Own It: Reproductive Rights for Everyone.”
The high-level event brought together government representatives, parliamentarians, FP2030 Asia and its Pacific Hub representatives, youth leaders, health experts, and development partners to reaffirm Pakistan’s commitment to ensuring universal access to contraception and reproductive health services.
Religious scholars, policy makers and experts reminded that the Holy Quran instructs mothers to breastfeed their children for two years, while some Islamic jurists extended this period to two and a half years, a practice that naturally supports birth spacing and maternal well-being.
Mufti Ghulam Majid of the Council of Islamic Ideology said Islam gives immense importance to women’s health and family welfare. “Imam Ghazali advised that there should be gaps in childbirth to protect the health and beauty of women, while also ensuring healthier children,” he said. “Imam Abu Hanifa even said that in some cases children should be breastfed for 30 months. These are examples showing that birth spacing is not only permissible but encouraged for the welfare of mothers and children.”
He added that while Pakistan is an Islamic society and nothing against religion can be accepted, Islam itself is a faith that embraces what is beneficial for people. He urged policymakers and health officials to adopt culturally sensitive terms such as family welfare, maternal and child health, and better health for women and children. Words like “controlling family size,” he warned, were often perceived as a Western agenda and created resistance in communities.
Federal Health Secretary Hamed Yaqoob Sheikh said family planning is a fundamental right and a central pillar of the government’s health strategy. He reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitments under FP2030 to increase contraceptive prevalence, reduce unmet need and expand access to quality reproductive health services, stressing that empowering women with reproductive choices is critical to achieving broader national development goals.
Prof. Shahzad Ali Khan, Vice Chancellor of the Health Services Academy, said Pakistan’s contraceptive prevalence rate (CPR) was stuck at just 12.4 percent from 1965 to 1994 until the Lady Health Worker programme, introduced by Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, raised it to 30 percent within a decade. “Since then, progress has stalled. Detachment of population from health has caused a serious setback. For effective service delivery, population programmes must be merged with health, and the involvement of the private sector is essential,” he said.
He stressed that contraceptive provision cannot be left to the government alone and called for community-based programmes and public-private partnerships. “Without strong engagement of private providers and local communities, CPR will not rise and Pakistan will continue to struggle with rapid population growth,” he warned.
Other speakers, including Director General Population Dr. Shabana Saleem and representatives of FP2030 and UNFPA, highlighted that family planning is not only a health intervention but also a driver of women’s empowerment, stronger families and sustainable communities.
The event concluded with a call for aligning family planning with Islamic values, integrating population and health services, and adopting community-focused strategies to ensure healthier mothers, healthier children and a more sustainable future for Pakistan.