Daily Times

It was only 12 years ago that the world marked its population having reached six billion. Yesterday, on October 31, another one billion were added. According to the UN, this figure is expected to surpass 10 billion by the end of the century. While many countries symbolically welcomed the seven billionth baby, the general reaction was one of concern over the long term implications for the economic, social and environmental fronts. Globally, there is a need for a policy that balances the need for restraining population growth against the unintended consequences of restraint policies. For example, the one-child policy as imposed by China has led to a gender imbalance in that society, with women becoming relatively in short supply. Social stigmas such as regarding baby girls as a curse must be eradicated through re-education, particularly in conservative societies such as South Asia.

In Pakistan, the population figure is expected to reach 210 million by 2020. Seeing as there is already a scarcity of basic necessities and opportunities for people, a majority of whom live in poverty, that forecast is a huge reason to worry. While the poor deem the idea of more helping hands beneficial to their families, they often ignore the accompanying dilemma of having more mouths to feed. Educating people, especially mothers, regarding the importance of family planning and the use of contraceptives would not only make spacing of births possible but also help reduce population growth. Following the success of Bangladesh in reducing population growth rates by involving the clergy, Pakistan should also take similar initiatives to curb this menace by taking mainstream religious scholars on board to use the pulpit as a force for good. Our country cannot afford to be forced to cater to the requirements of and accommodate a population surge that would burden its already strained economy.

The world, especially developing countries, needs to be more cognisant of the perils of uncontrolled population growth. Resources are required for food, shelter, water, healthcare, education, employment opportunities, human rights, etc, which the world is already straining to meet the burdens of. Moreover, the incremental demand for more resources for a rapidly mushrooming global population causes increasing over-use of natural resources and the consequent disturbance of the Earth’s ecological balance. For all these reasons, added to which are the effects of global warming and unprecedented environmental change, there exists a considerable threat to the survival of the human race that is staring at food scarcity if the gravity of this problem is not realised and resources not wisely and sustainably utilised. *