AJK is developing a population management plan to bring it to a sustainable level: Minister

Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Minister of Population Welfare Sardar Muhammad Hussain Khan said on Monday that alarming population growth in Pakistan and AJK has become one of the most challenging complicated for governments.

MIRPUR (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News – November 8, 2021): Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Minister for People’s Welfare Sardar Muhammad Hussain Khan said on Monday that alarming population growth in the Pakistan and the AJK have become one of the most complicated challenges for governments.

He said that the AJK government led by the PTI, which places high priority on the management of the population and brings it to a sustainable level by developing an integrated plan in this direction.

He was speaking at a seminar as the main guest, organized by the Department of Population Welfare of the AJK in the metropolis of the state, in particular for the ministers of the AJK and the Newly elected members of the AJK Legislative Assembly to brief them on the “challenges of rapid population growth in Pakistan / AJK and progress against the approved Council of Common Interest (CCI) recommended as of November 19, 2021 to rise to the challenge. ”While welcoming the newly elected AJK lawmakers, the AJK Minister of Population Welfare urged the audience to do their utmost to resolve this national challenge by integrating into a political resolution.

The AJK government, Hussain said, will provide all the support and resources necessary to address this challenge as a matter of priority. The recommendations approved by the ITC to meet the challenge are comprehensive and have the force of the Supreme Court of Pakistan guidelines.

On the directive of AJK Prime Minister Sardar Abdul Qayyum Niazi, the AJK Population Working Group meeting will be held on Tuesday and, in consultation with all stakeholders, will discuss political contours to meet the challenge. , he added.

The Minister especially thanked the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Pakistan and Rahnuma – Family Planning of Pakistan (R-FPAP) for their partnership for this national cause.

Previously, Syed Kamal Shah, Director General (R-FPAP), gave a comprehensive briefing on the purpose of the project and the status of the recommendations approved by CCI in Pakistan / AJK and provided a comparative analysis of the achievements and path to be continued. He stressed that the main objective of the project was to engage potential candidates in the AJK-2021 general election and to educate potential candidates on the challenge of alarming population growth and its cross-cutting repercussions.

This is the post-election conference aimed at educating policy makers about the seriousness of the challenge and gaining their support in the national interest for policy formulation. He added that before launching this project, the AJK Election Commission had also been integrated and that the Election Commission was very kind to appreciate the role of R-FPAP in disseminating the challenge and critical implications to decision makers. potential politicians in the context of pre-election activity. .

He further added that the project has yielded the desired results and we have successfully disseminated the challenge and its way forward and that all this has not been possible without the support of the AJK government.

Dr Jamil Ahmed Ch. SSR Program Specialist, UNFPA Pakistan, highlighted UNFPA’s strategic partnership with federal, provincial and regional governments in the implementation of recommendations endorsed by CCI and other related areas such as as policy formulation, capacity building, service delivery, etc. UNFPA is honored to support governments and civil society organizations to meet the challenge of rapid population growth in Pakistan, he said.

Raja M. Razzaq, retired government secretary. AJK and the project consultant in place, Rahnuma – Family Planning of Pakistan, also gave a full presentation on the challenge of rapid population growth in Pakistan / AJK and its cross-cutting implications and the way forward. He, while referring to the specific challenges of the AJK, pointed out that the AJK is a small state with an area of ​​13,297 km² while its projected population is 4.3 million with 51% women. The population density is 314 people per km² against 272.03 per km² in Pakistan.

However, the rugged terrain, sparse population, and low capacity to implement the demographic / family planning program could be attributed to low CPR (contraceptive prevalence rate), high unmet need (22% ); and high total fertility rate (3.5) In addition, the low accessibility of family planning and reproductive health services is also a challenge for AJK. At the same time, while referring to the forces, he cited that the AJK has enormous potential to reduce the rate of population growth based on a high literacy rate of 76.8% (86 , 9% men against 67.3% women) and the level of education of the population.

This particular aspect is surely a missed opportunity in the AJK, but the missing link is that this important opportunity has not been seized, he said. In concluding, he also shared the roadmap for improving service delivery in the area of ​​family planning and reproductive health at AJK. In addition, he also underlined the commitments made by the government. Pakistan in various international fora which need to be implemented by integrating these commitments into a specific political vision.

AJK Health Minister Nisar Ansar Abdali, AJK Health Secretary, Major General Ahsen Altaf Sati and AJK Population Welfare Department Secretary also addressed the opportunity and underscored the challenge and expressed their determination to meet it as articulated by the ICC recommendations.

Members of the AJK Legislative Assembly showed keen interest in the deliberations and most of them also joined the session via video link. Ch. Latif Akbar, Leader of the Opposition, appreciated the approach and called on the government to take this challenge seriously.

Raja Faisal Mumtaz Rathore, during a speech on this occasion, stressed that PPP gives high priority to the management of the population. He, while recalling the participation of the late Benazir Bhutto Shaheed in the “International Conference on Population and Development held in Cairo from September 5 to 13, 1994, declared that she, while realizing the seriousness of the challenge of a population alarming in Pakistan, herself as Prime Minister of Pakistan led the delegation. She always spoke boldly about empowering women through family planning for a healthy nation when no one else spoke on the topic. Our leader Benazir Bhutto Shaheed was a champion of women’s empowerment and women’s health by reducing the Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR) and Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) which is only possible through a planning system meaningful and structured family and reproductive health to integrate into the policy framework. “Therefore, areas related to population management, reproductive health and women’s empowerment are very important to us. He suggested the government’s four-point action plan: # 1. The government must give the highest priority to this sector and the required financial allocations as well as a comprehensive monitoring system to ensure progress and sustainability. accountability smoothly, should be started immediately. 2. The recommendation approved by the ICC of 19. 11. 2018, as presented today, must be implemented in letter and spirit. While examining the current state of CCI’s recommendations in AJK, it highlights a grim picture that needs to be implemented with clear and high determination. And I will suggest that Govt. is to form a “legislature oversight committee” to monitor and review the progress of recommendations approved by the ICC, which also has the support of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. N ° 3. Gouv. must bring in the necessary bills, ie the “Reproductive Health and Rights Bill”, as Sindh and KP had already enacted this legislation. No. 4. Gouv. is to hold a comparative study on how brotherly Muslim countries like Bangladesh, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia and other Muslim countries have managed their populations according to their resources. UNFPA and other international development partners can be more generous with their technical assistance to support the cause of family planning and reproductive health in AJK.

He also indicated that PPP legislatures with leadership consultation might choose to propose a resolution to the Assembly to discuss this “growing challenge” in the Assembly as it has apparently turned into an unconventional threat to the homeland. as well as for the AJK. Ms. Nabeela Ayub said.

Dr. Rashida Panezai President R-FPAP and Dr. Sabina Durrani Director General, Population Program Wing, Ministry of Regulation and Coordination of National Health Services, Govt. of Pakistan, also spoke at the seminar and expressed his gratitude to the government. of AJK for its support for such an important activity and its determination to rise to the challenge by developing a multidimensional approach.

Kh. Farooq Ahmed Minister of Local Authorities. & rural development, chap. Latif Akbar, Leader of the Opposition, Ms. Nabila Ayub, MLA PPP, Devan Ali Chugtai Minister of Elementary and Secondary Education, Ms. Sabina Durrani, Director General, Population Program Wing, Ministry of National Health Services Regulation & Coordination, Maj Gen Ahsen Altaf, Secretary of Health Ataullah Ata, Secretary of Population Welfare and various other deputies also spoke on this occasion.