KARACHI:
It is lamentable to mention that the all-encompassing issue of overpopulation has not been given the due importance it deserves by the successive governments in Pakistan. In this regard, lack of communication and coordination between the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Population Welfare is evident. Even though officials are well aware of the problem, they have failed to act accordingly. As a result, the problem has been compounding each year.
Perhaps the major reason why such a problem is widely overlooked in Pakistan is because population control is a controversial subject since there is an element of religious belief in it. Religious and cultural attitudes have discouraged the use of contraceptives as clerics have deemed the concept of family planning to be “un-Islamic”. It is pertinent, therefore, that all stakeholders especially the clergy play an active role in propagating the importance of birth control. As with all issues that require “uncomfortable” conversations, Pakistan effectively keeps sweeping family planning discussions under the carpet. It is a simple formula: to control the menace of increasing population in Pakistan, we need to focus on reducing the fertility rate — something which can only be achieved by introducing a targeted, creative and ethically sound family planning programme. There is no rocket science involved; provision of birth control pills and providing pre- and post-natal care is a holistic way of approaching the issue.
Furthermore, officials need to ensure that people have easy and cheap access to contraception tools which will help avoid cases of unwanted pregnancies and births. Use of contraceptives must be advertised and promoted along while ensuring cheap and ready access to them. Every state-owned hospital should be made to provide cheap and efficient birth control medicines. Since poor people have neither the means nor the awareness to use contraceptives, they need to be educated and made to understand the consequences of having too many children.
Salma Tahir
Lahore
Published in The Express Tribune, February 19th, 2021.
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