The federal government has set targets to curb population growth as part of its five-year plan.

Sources report that the Prime Minister approved the Ministry of Planning’s proposal during the NEC meeting. According to the plan, the target is to reduce the annual population growth rate to 1.1 percent by 2030. The latest census in 2023 recorded a growth rate of 2.55 percent, one of the highest in the region.

The Ministry of Planning is aiming to decrease the total fertility rate to 2.2 percent by 2030. In FY 2024, the rate stood at 3.32 percent.

Sources indicate that efforts are underway to increase intentional contraception usage to 60 percent by 2030. As of FY 2024, the rate was 39.36 percent.

It has been reported that a limited adoption of modern contraception methods has caused Pakistan to witness 2.5 million intentional abortions annually.

As of now, Pakistan’s population is at 241.49 million according to the 2023 census.