Expanding Family Planning Services, Fiscal Space Needed To Achieve SPG

News Desk

Islamabad: Sustainable population growth in Pakistan can be achieved by increasing the demand for family planning services and the fiscal space available to improve the quality and accessibility of these services, said National Health Services, Regulations, and Coordination (NHSR&C) State Minister Mahesh Kumar Malani on Monday.

“Lack of family planning services and unchecked population growth have a negative impact on many facets of national life, including high rates of malnutrition and infant, neonatal, and maternal mortality,” Mahesh Kumar added

While addressing parliamentarians at a parliamentary meeting on ‘Increasing Investment in Family Planning for Sustainable Development’ in Islamabad, Kumar Malani reaffirmed the government’s commitment to providing high-quality family planning services to enhance the health of mothers and children.

The Population Council organised the meeting with the support of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

Population Council Country Director Dr Zeba Sathar stressed the need to increase the allocation to the Population Fund, which was approved by the Council of Common Interests (CCI) in 2018.

These funds should be utilised to provide financing to provinces for designated functions, such as expanding universal coverage of family planning through the expansion of Lady Health Worker (LHW) services to uncovered areas, DrZeba added.

Additionally, vouchers should be provided to disadvantaged women through the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) to facilitate their access to family planning services. Furthermore, the potential of private sector service providers should be tapped to enhance accessibility.

Country Director also highlighted the importance of including population as a cross-cutting issue in the strategy to build resilience against the impact of climate change.

Former Senator Farhatullah Babar pointed out that the 82 percent weightage given to the population in the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award creates a narrative that supports population growth.

“When political and economic power is predominantly distributed among federating units based on population size, it not only marginalises smaller federating units but also incentivizes population growth,” Babar further stated.

SenatorMushahidHussainSayed stated “As recognised in the National Security Dialogue, national security should be defined as including human security in addition to military might. The unsustainable population growth and environmental degradation within our borders pose a threat to Pakistan’s security in addition to external threats.”

Farhatullah Babar suggested that the link between the environment and population should be emphasised in the national narrative. The present budgetary environment priority area should be expanded to ‘Environment and Population’.

Planning Commission Social Sector and Devolution Member Rafiullah Kakarunderscored the necessity to contextualise the spending effectiveness of family planning funding to enhance overall services.

General Services and Administration of Balochistan Parliamentary Secretary highlighted the criticality of saving maternal lives in the province, which has a high maternal mortality rate. The minister acknowledged the challenges posed by the terrain and scattered communities in providing services to remote areas.

Senator Taj Haider stressed the need to enhance public-private partnerships to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of delivering family planning services. Meanwhile, Hina Pervaiz Butt suggested using social media to educate couples about balancing family size and available resources.

UNFPA Country Representative for Pakistan Dr Luay Shabaneh emphasised the significance of creating an environment that enables couples to make informed decisions regarding the number and spacing of their children, thus balancing family size with available resources.