Integrated approach stressed to address population boom
Every year an estimated 18-20 lakh people are added to the country's total population, which is alarming. An integrated approach is needed to address population explosion, said speakers at a seminar yesterday.
Though the total fertility rate has been reduced from 6.3 percent to 2.5 percent in last 35 years, it is still high, they said adding that higher growth rate has negative impact on the country's overall economy as well as health and nutrition.
Since the dynamics of population, health and nutrition are composite in nature, it should be addressed simultaneously through policy and programme integration, they said at the seminar titled “Integrated Approach to Population, Health and Nutrition.”
Bangladesh Social and Economic Forum 2011 organised the seminar at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in the city.
Speakers said population problem should be viewed from a development paradigm and local level service capacity should be increased at the health and family welfare ministry to address the issue effectively.
Highlighting different dimension of population, the speakers said population control issue gets less priority in government programmes. The allocated budget for this purpose is also very insignificant, which should not be.
HM Ashikur Rahman MP was present as the chief guest while Zafrullah Khan of Population Council presided over the seminar.
Prof KM Nurun Nabi of the department of Population Sciences, University of Dhaka, presented the keynote paper.
Among others Abul Jamil Faysel, country representative of Engender Health, Abdul Quaiyum, former directorate general of family planning, Fakhrul Hasan, division chief of planning commission, also spoke.
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