‘Policy hurdles fuel population boom’
Family Planning Association of Malawi (Fpam) has bemoaned policy barriers hindering youths in the country from accessing family planning commodities which would help in controlling population growth.
While government through the Ministry of Health has lined up a number of reform priority areas to revamp the health sector, the high rate at which Malawi’s population is growing — coupled with other burdens — poses a serious crisis to the sector.
Health Minister Jean Kalilani said last week that come 2030, with an annual population growth rate of 3 percent in 2013, Malawi’s population is estimated to rise to 26 million.
“The fertility rate for Malawi is 5.4 births per woman which is very high. If not controlled, this will continue creating huge demand in health care,” said Kalilani during the Health Sector Mid-Year Review Meeting held in Lilongwe.
But Fpam Executive Director Thokozani Mbendera said in an interview that while family planning methods are readily available for access in urban areas, rural people still have difficulties in accessing them.
“We have a lot of work to do regarding the problem of rapid population growth. Malawi is a youthful country but most of the youths are in academic institutions where they are not allowed to access family planning commodities,” said Mbendera.
He further decried the contradiction that is there between the availability of statistics on family planning methods and access to the same.
“Family planning information for women and youths is not always easily available despite these being the key people in the pursuit of controlling population in the country,” said Mbendera.
Malawi is said to be one of the fastest growing countries in Africa with its population having more than tripled over the last forty years, and among many other things, experts say the rate is going to have adverse effects on land too.
Ironically, the reforms that are being currently prioritised do not clearly spell out how the rapid population growth is going to be curtailed.
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