orld Population Day – July 11 - unites reform advocates, leaders and organisations to address the population challenges. It serves as a platform for dialogue and action, aiming to create a better future. It also aims to raise awareness about global population issues and their impact on development. The theme designated for this year is Addressing Global Challenges: A Focus on Population Issues. This theme emphasises the need to address various global challenges, including sustainable development, climate change, poverty and inequality. The day will also focus on how Sustainable Development Goals are linked to population dynamics, particularly regarding health, education and poverty.

The global population is at a historic high, exceeding 8.2 billion people in 2025. This number reflects an annual increase of approximately 71 million people. While this growth (0.89 percent annually) is slower than in past decades, the world still faces challenges related to urbanisation, resource consumption, environmental impact and economic inequality.

More than 40 percent of women around the world cannot make decisions on reproductive health independently. As few as one in four women across low- and middle-income countries are realising their desired fertility. One woman dies every two minutes due to pregnancy or childbirth-related complications.

Increased population has resulted in more poverty by straining resources, leading to lower per capita income, increased competition for jobs and potentially higher food prices. Poverty repeatedly stimulates higher fertility rates as families may have more children to compensate for high mortality rates or as a form of social security. Thus it can bring about further poverty, creating a vicious cycle.

One of the consequences of increased poverty is extreme hunger and malnutrition. It is a barrier to sustainable development and creates a trap from which poor communities cannot easily escape. Hunger and malnutrition mean less productive individuals, who are more prone to disease and often unable to earn more and improve their livelihoods.

The World Bank updated its international poverty lines last month (June 2025) to reflect changes in global price levels and new purchasing power parity (PPP) data, ensuring more accurate and relevant global poverty assessments. These revisions aim at improving how poverty is measured and tracked across the world, particularly in the context of growing economic conditions and the availability of better data. The update results in a new international poverty line of $3 per person per day, which replaces the previous $2.15 poverty line based on 2017 PPPs.

The new poverty line for lower-middle-income countries is now $4.20 per person per day, up from $3.65, affecting 44.7 per cent of Pakistan’s population. The extreme poverty line has also been revised to $3 per person per day, affecting 16.5 per cent of Pakistan’s population, significantly higher than the previous $2.15 threshold. This will likely lead to a substantial increase in the reported poverty rate in the country.

Poverty has far-reaching consequences in Pakistan, impacting various aspects of life including health, education and overall societal stability. It contributes to high crime rates, social disorder and a decline in moral values. The worsening population trends and higher inflation rates have adversely effected the level of poverty in the country.

World Bank reports that in 2024, Pakistan’s poverty rate rose to 25.3 per cent, an increase of 7 percentage points compared to 2023, with an estimated 13 million more people falling below the poverty line. This indicates a significant rise in poverty levels in the country. The report concluded that while economic stability is crucial, addressing systemic inequalities is dominant for sustainable poverty relief.

The forthcoming World Bank Poverty, Equity and Resilience Assessment for Pakistan will provide critical context for interpreting these updated poverty estimates. The report is a detailed update on poverty, inequality and non-monetary outcomes, investigates key drivers of poverty and outlines a forward-looking agenda to enhance prosperity and resilience for the people of Pakistan.

Almost all SDGs lead to checking poverty one way or the other. In particular, Goal 1, emphasises the need to “End poverty in all its forms everywhere.” It aims to eliminate extreme poverty and reduce poverty in all its dimensions by 2030. This includes ensuring access to basic services, social protection and resources for the poor and vulnerable, as well as building resilience to climate-related and other economic, social and environmental shocks.

Pakistan’s 240,485,658 population makes it the fifth-most populous country in the world. Since a large population has a profound, cross-sectorial impact on the country’s socioeconomic growth, Pakistan needs transformative change to boost family planning to check the level of poverty and to achieve projected Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.

Several factors are contributing to the rapid increase in the population of Pakistan. A low literacy rate among women and girls is one of those. There is a fundamental association between a girl going to school, even for a short period of time, and having fewer kids in her lifetime than a girl who does not go to school at all. The high increase in population has resulted in a shortage of water, electricity, jobs, infrastructure, public transportation, health, education and other social benefits.

Overpopulation in Pakistan has adverse effects on poverty and unemployment rates, as the job market struggles to keep pace with the growing workforce. Insufficient access to reproductive health services and family planning information, particularly in rural areas, contribute to the problem.

According to the World Bank for every 1,000 babies born in Pakistan, 50 die before reaching their first birthday. The maternal mortality rate is 186 deaths per 100,000 live births.

Addressing global challenges related to population issues requires a multi-factoral approach to be focused on sustainable development, resource management and social equity, with improved access to education and healthcare, empowering women, promoting family planning and raising economic growth that benefits all segments of the society. International cooperation is also crucial to share knowledge, resources and best practices. Pakistanis need to empower communities, spread awareness and work together toward eradicating poverty and ensuring a sustainable future.

The writer is a playwright and a freelance journalist. He can be reached at pashajaved1@gmail.com and his blogging site: soulandland.com.