Conference on Population Growth and Investing in Human Resource Development

  • 19 Dec 2017
  • PostedIn: Daily Times

LAHORE: Punjab Higher Education Commission Chairman Dr Nizamuddin said that the country’s population would cross the 395 million mark by 2047.

While addressing a press conference at Government College University (GCU) along with GCU Vice Chancellor Dr Hassan Ameer Shah, University of Education VC Dr Rauf i Azam and Sabiha Shaheen of Bargad Organisation, Dr Nizam said that the 2017 census had revealed that the country’s population was growing at 2.4 percent and not 1.6.

He said that to counter different aspects regarding population and human resource a conference is being organized at GCU titled Population Growth and Investing in Human Resource Development which will focus on the management of Human Resource as per the population increase. He said that after 2047 there will be huge youth population in country but there will be no jobs.

“Therefore there is dire need to invest in Human Resource sector if we want to fulfill the needs of increasing population,” he said. He said that research process was carried out by the academia in the world. “In our country, this is done by government institutions,” he said.

“We have a history of population influencing politics since mid 1960s, but now we need to put some urgent efforts on still growing population, I mean how to respond to the unprecedented growth rates in the region, the emerging urban poles, lack of migration policies, youth bulge and changing sex ratios,” he said.

He said that the conference would discuss deficiencies in addressing family planning goals and highlight what was required to fulfill international commitments. “Our population welfare programme has been devolved to provinces,” he said, adding that issues including investment in youth skills to increase human capital will be discussed in the conference.

“If the current pattern of fertility continues, then on the 100th birthday of Pakistan, our population will be around 390 million. We require taking concerted efforts now on the federal and the provincial levels in order to address these issues in a timely manner,” he said.

Published in Daily Times, December 19th 2017.