Population growth needs to be addressed

THE population growth rate in the country is something that must be addressed.
The higher the population growth, the higher is the demand for goods and services – more classrooms, teachers, doctors and nurses.
Secretary for Department of National Planning and Monitoring Konny Samuel last month told those gathered for the launching of the UNFPA report The State of World Population 2018 that polygamy is one of the causes of high population growth and should be discouraged.
Polygamy is the act of marrying multiple spouses that means having more than one husband or wife at the same time.
The habit was once quite widespread across parts of the globe and is still practiced by some to this day.
But in most countries, polygamy is now illegal or at the very least not officially recognised.
Polygamous marriages are most popular in rural areas and are taking place in low educated peoples.
Polygamy has reflected various differences on the couples whose relationship will be more traditional than in monogamous marriages.
Polygamous marriage is due to different causes and factors including cultural, political, social, economic forces or behavioural and psychological factors.
One thing for sure, the country is facing a baby boom and as articulated by the secretary, “people are marrying at will and having children without informed decision and choices”.
This only puts strain on the government to meet the demands of its citizens. PNG’s economy is growing at a rate of about 2.4 per cent.
Really, the population growth needs to be managed otherwise there will have a big problem trying to meet the demand of a growing population.
Unbelievable but true, is that PNG does not have a target for population size.
For a country that just celebrated 43 years of Independence, that is not right.
The State of World Population 2018 report shows that when people make reproductive choices, they decide the size of their families and when to have children.
We can say most of our young generation lack that choice and it can have a long-term effect on fertility rates, often making them higher or lower than what most people desire.
The power to choose the number, timing and spacing of children can bolster economic and social development.
PNG needs a total investment of K82.6 million to reach the
committed contraceptive prevalence rate by 2024, a study has shown.
The United Nation Population Fund cost-benefit analysis of family planning services in PNG shows that the country is falling short of its family planning commitments.
The report says despite increased efforts, the uptake of voluntary family planning has stagnated in PNG.
That means more investment in family planning is needed.
When contraceptive methods are increased, it will decrease pregnancies and live births and decrease maternal morality and morbidities as well as infant and child morality.
And the only way to ensure these methods work is through education, not just any education but quality education from the urban to rural schools.
Quality education highlights a lot of things. Quality education includes outcomes that encompass knowledge, skills and attitudes.
Unless the young population are educated to a standard to understand the advantages and disadvantages of having children very early in life, the population of PNG will continue to increase as an alarming rate.