ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s information minister Attaullah Tarar on Tuesday urged Islamic scholars and leaders to actively support family-planning and reproductive-health campaigns, warning that deep-rooted patriarchal attitudes were preventing women from accessing lifesaving maternal care and contributing to the country’s worsening population crisis.
Tarar’s remarks come as Pakistan faces one of the fastest-growing populations in Asia. As he put it, the country was adding the equivalent of “the size of New Zealand every year” to its population, placing immense pressure on health systems, education, jobs and long-term economic growth. The World Bank and UN agencies have repeatedly warned that Pakistan’s demographic trajectory threatens to undermine development gains unless family-planning uptake sharply increases.
Pakistan also continues to record among the world’s highest rates of infant and maternal mortality. UNICEF data show nearly 50 deaths per 1,000 live births, and government officials say deaths linked to poor reproductive care, neonatal complications and preventable maternal conditions remain widespread, especially in rural and low-income communities.
Speaking at a population summit in Islamabad, Tarar said Pakistan’s male-dominated social norms and reluctance to treat maternal health as a core right were costing lives, and that religious scholars were essential to shifting public attitudes.
