The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the federal government to convene a meeting of Council of Common Interests (CCI) within 10 days to discuss recommendations of the task force on alarming population growth. The court directed the print and electronic media to publish and air the recommendations of the task forces for three days without any cost.
The Chief Justice expressing concern over the alarming population growth said that he would climb on the truck and go to different areas for raising the issue of high population rate. He said if the population is not controlled then it would be become the biggest problem of Pakistan. He urged that the walks should be arranged all over the country for highlighting this issue. The task force comprising officials of health and population ministries of the federal the provincial governments on Tuesday submitted its recommendations before a three-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, as to how population explosion could be controlled.
The task force report stated that Pakistan is the sixth most populous country in the world with a population of 207.8 million growing at an intercensal growth rate of 2.4% per annum between 1998-2017 (Population and Housing Consul 2017). At this rate Pakistan's population will double in the next 30 years, compared with an average doubling time of 60 years for other South Asian countries. The population of the country is projected to increase to 285 million by 2030.
Such a high level of population growth is unsustainable and has already eaten into the modest gains made in terms of socio-economic development. The rapidly growing population has direct negative implications for adverse climate change environment degradation, deforestation and above all the decline in water availability per capita putting Pakistan in water stress situation. It will exacerbate food security and threaten the country's sustainable development prospects.
It recommended: establishing national and provincial task forces to provide oversights and take critical decisions to reduce population growth, lower fertility rate and increase contraceptive prevalence rate (CPR); the national task force will be chaired by the prime minister and include chief ministers of all the provinces, federal and provincial ministers of population, health, education, finance and planning and representatives of civil society. The provincial task forces chaired by the respective chief minister to include provincial ministers of population, health, education, finance and planning, and representatives of civil society.
The progress towards reducing population growth rate, lowering fertility and increasing contraceptive prevalence rate be monitored through a robust data collections system and assessments of results and presented before national and provincial task forces.
Ensure Universal Access to Family Planning and Reproductive Health (FP & RH) Services: Mandate all public health facilities (BHUs, RHCs, THQs, DHQHs, teaching hospitals) to deliver family planning services as part of the essential service package. All general registered private sector practitioners and hospitals to provide family planning counselling, information and services to male and female clients. Lady health workers will provide family planning, ante-natal and post-natal counseling, and contraception services on priority basis.
Finance: The federal government will create a five-year non-lapsable special fund for reducing population growth rate with annual allocation of Rs 10 billion. The fund shall be set up exclusively from federal resources without any cut from provincial funds. The funds will meet for five years, 50% amount of additional allocations made by the provinces for procurement of contraceptive commodities over and above the budget provision of Financial Year 2018-19 in the respective head.
The federal and the provincial population and health budgets for FP/RH to be doubled over the next two years and protected from reallocation to other programmes and departments, while ensuring timely releases.
Donor financing to NGOs and private sector organisations involved in FP/RH to be streamlined through an effective coordination mechanism. Corporate Sector to allocate CSR funds for FP services and advocacy.
Legislation: Family Planning and Reproductive Health (FP&RH) Rights Bill to ensure mandatory FP&RH services by all general healthcare facilities in public and private sector. Early Child Marriage Restraint Act be introduced by federal and provincial governments (Sindh passed this Act in 2013). Pre-marital counseling on family planning should be mandatory for Nikah registration; LHWs or appropriate services providers to provide the requisite counseling. Right to promote primary healthcare for mother and child be made mandatory' as the right to education given in Article 25-A of Constitution.
Advocacy and Communication: A national narrative to be developed in consultation with the provinces and other stakeholders to create a sense of urgency and necessity of reducing population growth rate and achieving socio-economic wellbeing for all. Mass movement leading to a call of action to be launched involving political leaders, corporate sector, academia, judiciary, executive, Ulema, media, intelligentsia, civil society and youth. PEMRA will provide free airtime for family planning messages on radio and TV channels at prime time. Behavioural Change Communication campaign to highlight to roles and responsibilities of men in family planning.
Support of Ulema: Joint declaration of Ulema made at Population Summit-2015, Islamabad be widely advocated. Training courses on family planning to be arranged at the provincial judicial academies and relevant training institutes for Ulema and Khateebs.