KARACHI: Pakistan will be among the eight countries to account for half of the projected global population growth by 2050, along with the Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, the Philippines and the USA, says a UNFPA global flagship report launched at Szabist (Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology) on Thursday.

Titled 8 Billion Lives, Infinite Possibilities: The Case for Rights and Choices, the report presents latest trends about population growth or decline, fertility rates, reproductive health, family planning and migration across the world.

Globally launched in April this year, the report cautions against controlling bodies to address demographic concerns. Family planning, it says, must not be used as a means for achieving fertility targets but as a tool for empowering individuals; and women should be able to choose if, when, and how many children they want to have.

The report also discusses “population anxieties” felt in different parts of the world, including in Pakistan, in reaction to population growth or, in some cases, to low fertility rates or other demographic trends.

Pakistan advised to introduce policies to address population anxiety-related issues

It strongly recommends that governments institute policies with gender equality and rights at their heart, such as parental leave programmes, child tax credits, policies that promote gender equality at the workplace, and universal access to sexual and reproductive health and rights.

“These offer a proven formula that will reap economic dividends and lead to resilient societies able to thrive no matter how populations change,” the report says.

According to the report, Pakistan’s population is currently estimated at 240.5 million and is projected to reach 403 million by 2050. Sindh’s current population (56.3m in 2022) is estimated to grow to 95.7m by 2050 with an average annual growth rate of 2.41 per cent.

The province would need to create 25 million jobs by 2040, which would be a difficult task given the local and global economic conditions.

Sindh alone would need 25,000 more primary schools by 2040. Currently, more than half of the girls at, 51 per cent (aged 5-16), are out of school in the province, together with 39 per cent of boys. Sindh will also require five million more houses by 2040 to accommodate the growing population.

Radical rethinking

Speaking at the event, Dr Luay Shabaneh, UNFPA Representative in Pakistan, said there was population anxiety in the country and a genuine linkage between population dynamics, poverty, nutrition and other socioeconomic dimensions recommending that these should be made clear in the public policies and programmes in the country.

He called for a radical rethink of how population numbers are framed, urging policymakers and other stakeholders to abandon narratives about population booms and busts and instead focus efforts on ensuring that individuals, especially women, can freely make their own reproductive choices.

“The government needs to ensure that families receive proper services, information and understanding to implement their own reproductive decisions. Women are not accountable for any nation’s problems; they are victims of social norms,” said Dr Shabaneh.

“People need to talk about population issues in today’s world of unease and uncertainty. Still, they must do so in new ways that uproot current biases and avoid perpetuating harmful and discriminatory norms and myths.”

Family planning is also an economic, development issue, says Dr Azra Pechuho

In her remarks, provincial minister for health and population Dr Azra Fazal Pechuho, also the chief guest, emphasised the need for greater investments in reproductive health and family planning.

“Family planning is an integral aspect of sustainable development. Family planning isn’t just a women’s issue, it’s also an economic and a development issue. We must invest in family planning for healthier and more productive populations, and more sustainable economic growth,” she said.

Stakeholders contended that population growth could be tackled more effectively by engaging all cross-cutting sectors directly, focusing on addressing inequalities in education, income, employment, regional connectivity, gender and digitalisation.

The issue, they pointed out, was beyond just contraceptive prevalence. It was about empowering people to make the right decision, and the power of decision was directly related to education for both females and males, behaviour and livelihood.

The event was attended by senior government officials, consul generals of different countries, Szabist President Shahnaz Wazir Ali, heads of national and international organisations, development experts and researchers, among others.

Published in Dawn, June 23rd, 2023