Islamabad, 29 November 2021 (TDI): On Friday, Pakistan hosted the ‘International Donor Conference on the Agenda of Family Planning and Population Dynamics’ in Islamabad. The event was organized by Pakistan’s Ministry Of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination, and the United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA).
The Conference’s keynote address was delivered by Dr. Arif Alvi, the President of Pakistan, where he urged all the stakeholders to take effective measures to comply with the National Action Plan on population.
Wendy Gilmour, the Canadian High Commissioner to Pakistan, attended the event and expressed Ottawa’s unwavering support towards the Agenda. Speaking at the occasion, she emphasized the importance of understanding population dynamics.
The High Commissioner maintained that efforts to promote family planning in Pakistan are greatly welcomed by the Government of Canada and the state will extensively collaborate with Islamabad to take the agenda forward.
@gilmour_wendy – Canada’s High Commissioner to Pakistan congratulated @GovtofPakistan and Honorable @ArifAlvi (President of Pakistan) on taking the population agenda up.
This is quite important for the development of #Pakistan. We all should work together on #FamilyPlanning pic.twitter.com/sZ1ltbEEFw— Joshua Dilawar (@joshuavd) November 26, 2021
Wendy Gilmour further urged the stakeholders to create more opportunities to ensure the wellbeing and reproductive health of young girls and women in Pakistan.
The President’s Remarks
In his keynote address, the President of Pakistan, Dr. Arif Alvi, stated that the goal of organizing the Conference was to brief the population on reproductive health and to encourage family planning in Pakistan.
In this regard, he called upon the country’s Ulema and media platforms to educate the citizens on the subject matter.
The President also noted that family planning is essential to tackle poverty and health insecurity in Pakistan as it would help in promoting equal economic distribution in the country.
Participants of the Conference
Apart from the Canadian High Commissioner Wendy Gilmour, and Pakistan’s President Dr. Alvi, several renowned officials participated in the event. These included the British High Commissioner to Pakistan, Christian Turner, Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Planning, Development, Reforms and Special Initiatives, Asad Umar, and Senator Walid Iqbal.
In addition, the Social Sector member, Dr. Shabnum Sarfraz, the European Union’s Ambassador to Pakistan, Androulla Kaminara, and the Country Director for Pakistan and Afghanistan’s United Nations AIDS (UNAIDS), Yuki Takemoto, also attended the conference.
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