ISLAMABAD  -  Federal Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal on Wednesday said that service delivery and key outcomes cannot be achieved without devolving authority to local governments and stressed that the entire province of Sindh cannot be run from Karachi and Punjab cannot be run from Lahore.

The minister expressed these views as chief guest at the launch of Pakistan @ 2050” study by Population Council and UNFPA.

Pio Smith, Regional Director UNFPA; Muhammad Yahya, UN Resident Coordinator in Pakistan; Luay Shabaneh, Country Director UNFPA, and Zeba Sattar, Country Director Population Council were among the panellists and the event was further attended by academia, government officials, diplomats, development partners, deans of universities and fellow authors. Dr Azra, Provincial Health Minister from Sindh attended it online.

Citing his Vision 2010 which he presented in 1997, he said that he had prepared the vision after getting inspired from the vision of Malaysia and China. “Unfortunately, two years later martial law was imposed and Pakistan became dependent on foreign aid.” The path to progress got broken due to many hurdles, the minister said. “However it is a proud achievement for the country that Pakistan became the first country in South Asia to conduct a digital census.”

The minister said that there is a major debate going on in India right now on conducting the digital census, a seemingly gigantic task. “We carried out the census with the consensus of all the provinces”, Ahsan Iqbal said.

He further said that debating on the problems of growing population is necessary. It is also important to note that after the 18th Amendment, powers were transferred to the provinces and the provinces have not yet devolved powers to local governments.

The entire province of Sindh cannot be run from Karachi and Punjab cannot be run from Lahore. Service delivery and key outcomes cannot be achieved without devolving authority to local governments. The minister stressed that devolution of powers to lower levels is essential to improve the governance system.

In the past, population growth was beneficial for developing countries, but now it has become a problem due to lack of resources. Talking about the percentage of employed women, the minister stated that in Pakistan, only 23 percent of women are employed, compared to 50 percent in developed countries. Family planning education and awareness must reach the smallest regions in Pakistan, he stated.

“Pakistan’s problems are bigger than any one leader or party. Stability and policy continuity in the country can remove the impediments to growth,” Ahsan Iqbal stated.

Addressing the audience, Regional Director UNFPA PIO Smith said that 66 percent of Pakistan’s population is under 30 years of age. “It is a huge demographic advantage because if we can equip this demographic with education and skills, it can become productive instead of becoming an economic burden.” He said that the report underscores which challenges are there if the population stays unequipped. “The decisions we make today will determine if this demographic will be a bonus or boon.”

He further said that youth and women represent two most powerful challenges.  Stressing on the fact that women’s empowerment isn’t just a moral imperative but an economic need, he said that educating young girls is not just a moral responsibility. Opportunities are endless for women and youth if they are educated and skilled, he asserted.

In here welcome remarks Dr Zeba Sattar said that the 2023 Housing and Population census gave a shocking news that population growth had increased than the one recorded in previous census. Citing figures about unplanned pregnancies and abortions, she stated that there are 2 million unplanned births and 3.8 million abortions recorded as per data. Highlighting the need to reduce the gap between family planning demands and services, she said that Pakistan must take drastic policy measures to address the challenges noticed as a result of census.