ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) - Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday termed Pakistan’s annual population growth rate of 2.55 percent, an alarming trend requiring immediate and coordinated policy action at the national level to address the issue.
The prime minister chaired a high-level meeting to review the challenges posed by Pakistan’s rising population and to deliberate on effective strategies to manage it.
“We need comprehensive planning to ensure our growing population, especially the youth, becomes a productive part of the economy,” he stressed.
“A large segment of our population comprises young people, who are the most valuable asset for our country,” he added.
Shehbaz Sharif emphasised that the government was taking several initiatives to empower the youth and integrate them into the country’s economic mainstream.
“Opportunities are being created to enable our youth to play a central role in national development,” he added.
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Speaking on gender inclusion, PM Shehbaz underlined the critical importance of women’s participation in the workforce. “Women constitute a significant portion of our human capital.
We must ensure greater employment opportunities for them,” he directed.
The prime minister instructed the formation of a committee to develop a comprehensive and effective national policy, in close collaboration with provincial governments.
“A unified and strategic response is the need of the hour,” he asserted, calling for a coordinated federal-provincial framework to tackle population-related issues.
He also stressed the importance of launching a nationwide awareness campaign to educate citizens about the implications of unchecked population growth, especially in the context of sustainable economic development.
The meeting was also attended by federal ministers including Ahsan Iqbal, Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, Attaullah Tarar, Sardar Muhammad Yousaf, Azam Nazeer Tarar and other officials concerned.