Speakers stress urgent need for effective measures to curb rapidly growing population at session under Lahore District Population Welfare Officer
LAHORE: (UrduPoint/Pakistan Point News-Oct 25th, 2025) The experts on Saturday stressed the urgent need for effective measures to curb the rapidly growing population in Pakistan, particularly in Punjab. They highlighted that 64 percent of the country’s population comprises youth who must be properly guided to contribute positively to national development.
The session, organized by the Lahore District Population Welfare Officer under the ADP Scheme titled “Chief Minister Population Management and Family Planning Programme”, was held at a local hotel and attended by journalists and columnists.
Addressing the gathering, Lahore District Population Officer Mazhar warned that Pakistan’s population could soar to 260 million by 2030 if awareness efforts are not intensified.
“Pakistan has a very large youth population — about 64 percent,” Mazhar said. “If these young people are not properly guided and informed, they could become a burden on the state rather than an asset. Awareness and education about population control are crucial at this stage.”
Mazhar stressed the importance of a comprehensive national policy for population management. Presenting statistical data, he pointed out that the number of dependents currently exceeds the number of active workers nationwide.
“We must also address myths and misconceptions surrounding population control efforts,” he added. “Many people wrongly assume that the Population Welfare Department aims to stop reproduction altogether. In reality, our objective is to maintain a balance in population growth.”
He explained that population policies differ by country.
“It all depends on the demographic and economic needs of each nation.”
Sharing provincial data, Mazhar said Punjab has the highest population in the country, while Balochistan has the lowest.
“Interestingly, the Population Welfare Department in Balochistan is working to increase the population,” he said. “This clearly shows that the department’s role is to maintain balance, not to promote a negative agenda as some people believe.”
Mazhar further revealed that the district administration is collaborating with religious scholars and social media influencers to promote awareness about family planning and population control.
“This engagement program with clerics and influencers will continue until 2027,” he announced.
Social worker Amir also addressed the session, highlighting the life-saving potential of family planning and the urgent need for wider contraceptive availability.
“A mother dies every 50 minutes due to complications from unintended pregnancies,” Amir said. “Around 40 percent of all births in Pakistan are unintended, and this is a major health crisis.”
He criticized the lack of access to contraceptives, stating:
“It is unfortunate that Coca-Cola is available in almost every corner of the country, but contraceptives are not. Even a major city like Lahore faces shortages.”
Amir added that the use of contraceptives could prevent 72 percent of maternal deaths and 78 percent of newborn deaths.
“Pakistan ranks 164th on the Human Development Index,” he said. “We must take action now, and the media has a critical role to play in spreading awareness.”
Two female doctors also shared their perspectives, emphasizing the need for simpler and more culturally appropriate language in awareness campaigns.
“There is no easy word for ‘contraceptive’ in urdu, Punjabi, or other local languages, which makes it difficult to communicate the message effectively,” said one of the doctors, a psychologist.
Towards the end of the session, journalists shared suggestions on how to make the campaign more impactful in the media and how to design messages that could resonate more effectively with the public.
