KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, in a follow-up meeting with the UNFPA Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific, Pio Smith, expressed his government’s commitment to sustainable population control and family planning goals.
“This commitment, along with UNFPA’s ongoing support, marks a significant step toward improved maternal health, reproductive rights, and gender equality in the province.”
From Sindh government Minister Health & Population Dr Azra Fazal Pechuho, Secretary to CM Raheem Shaikh, Secretary Population Hadi Bullo, UNFP Representative to Pakistan Dr Luay Shabaneh, Representative to Pakistan, Head of Sindh Office Muqaddar Shah, and Programme Analysist Ms Renuka Swami attended the meeting.
Pakistan, currently the fifth most populous country globally, faces unique challenges related to population management and maternal health, the CM said and added his.
Pio Smith said that UNFPA has been supporting Pakistan since the first agreement in 1960, and it has now completed nine country programmes, advancing family planning, reproductive health, and gender equality. He added that building on this, the 10th Country Programme (2023-2027) is set to focus on three key transformative goals: ending unmet family planning needs, preventing maternal deaths, and addressing harmful practices like child marriage and gender-based violence.
The meeting was informed that Sindh has made significant progress in contraceptive use, with the National Institute of Population Studies (NIPS) reporting an increase in the contraceptive prevalence rate (CPR) to 41.4 percent. The province aims to reach 47 per cent CPR by 2025 and 57 percent by 2030, contributing to reduced maternal mortality and improved maternal health.
It may be noted that under its 10th Country Programme, UNFPA is providing extensive support to the Sindh government and local agencies in several areas including family planning, training health workers on counselling, logistics, and reproductive health services, gender-based Violence.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024