China has offered Pakistan to start joint venture to produce contraceptive materials in Pakistan. The offer was made during a 13-member Chinese delegation meeting on Friday with Minister for Population Welfare Chaudhry Shahbaz Hussain.
Contraceptive and Supply Development Centre and National Population and Family Commission Director General Liu Jiwu is leading Chinese delegation.
The Minister appreciated their offer and said joint venture for producing contraceptive material would be helpful to lower the high birth rate in Pakistan.
The minister informed delegation about the family planning programme going on in Pakistan. He said the family Planning Programme of Pakistan was the oldest in the region. It was a programme of social change and focussed on voluntary adoption of small family norms, which provided services through about 2000 service outlets on family planning and reproductive health.
The minister further said the current population was 154.00 million and population growth rate was 1.9 per cent per annum.
He highlighted the significance of family planning programme in Pakistan and said, "we are inching towards our set objectives to reduce high birth rate from 1.9 to 1.4 per cent by 2020."
He said the present government was committed to achieve desired results by adopting concrete and practicable steps.
Liu Jiwu invited the minister to visit China to see how contraceptive materials were being manufactured on international standard.