Govt urged to make family planning a top national priority

MINGORA: The media professionals and development experts on Friday urged the government to make family planning a top national priority, terming it essential for the country’s prosperity, child welfare and sustainable development.

The call was made during a ‘Media Coalition Meeting’ organized by the Population Council in collaboration with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). The participants stressed that child-focused interventions, including such as improved survival rates, better nutrition, equitable education, and gender-responsive budgeting, must be backed by access to comprehensive family planning services.

“Population planning is not just about numbers. It’s about ensuring that every child survives and thrives,” said Dr Ali Mir, senior director at the Population Council. He highlighted the media’s role as “frontline defenders” in the push for sustainable development and evidence-based policymaking. The meeting underscored alarming indicators that paint a bleak picture of Pakistan’s human capital crisis.

According to data presented by Ikramul Ahad, deputy manager at the Population Council, around 675 newborns die every day in Pakistan, while 26 million children remain out of school. Malnutrition continues to plague the country, with 40percent of children under five stunted. In Sindh, this figure rises to 50%, and in Balochistan, only 22percent of children attend primary school. Punjab’s under-five mortality rate stands at 80 per 1,000 live births.

Experts pointed to chronic underinvestment in health and education - currently far below the global recommended spending of 6% and 7% of GDP, respectively - as a root cause of these problems. However, solutions were also on the table. The Pakistan @2050 report by the Population Council reveals that if Pakistan can reduce its population growth rate to 1.2 percent by 2030, the country could see GDP growth rise by 1.7 percentage points, per capita income more than double, unschooled children drop from 38percent to 8percent and female post-secondary education triple by 2050.

“Family planning is a catalyst for progress across every development goal,” said Dr Ghulam Farid Khan of UNFPA. Ali Mazhar Chaudhry, director of communication at the Population Council, reaffirmed the media’s role as a change agent. “You are not just reporting on the issues. You are shaping the solutions,” he told journalists at the meeting.