PM Shehbaz calls for urgent population planning to ease pressure on resources

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday emphasised the importance of balancing population growth with the country's available resources, warning that the rapidly increasing population is placing significant strain on national resources and hindering sustainable development.

While chairing a high-level meeting on population welfare, the prime minister said that population planning should be integrated with national development goals, economic stability, and efforts to improve human capital, according to a statement issued by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO).

He directed officials to convene the first meeting of the National Population Council as soon as possible and ordered the immediate finalisation of its organisational framework to ensure effective policymaking on population issues.

The meeting was attended by Chief of Defence Staff and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif, Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, Minister of State for Finance and Railways Bilal Azhar Kayani, along with other senior government officials.

Prime Minister Shehbaz announced that he would personally lead the National Population Council, which will include the chief ministers of all four provinces, the prime minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, the chief minister of Gilgit-Baltistan, and other relevant stakeholders.

Officials briefed participants on the country's growing population and ongoing efforts to improve population management and welfare.

They also outlined plans to integrate family planning with social protection programmes, while highlighting women's education and economic empowerment as central components of the national population strategy.

The meeting was informed that a nationwide awareness campaign would soon be launched to encourage responsible family planning and balanced population growth. Participants were also briefed on successful population management initiatives implemented in countries such as Bangladesh, Indonesia, and Iran.

According to the PMO, the National Population Council will work closely with provincial governments to implement an effective and coordinated population welfare strategy across the country.