Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday underscored the need to maintain a balance between population growth and national resources, warning that Pakistan’s rapidly expanding population is placing increasing pressure on the country’s development and economy.

Chairing a high-level meeting on population welfare in Islamabad, the prime minister said population planning must be aligned with national development goals, economic stability, and human resource development.

He directed authorities to convene the inaugural meeting of the National Population Council at the earliest and finalise its organisational structure without delay to strengthen policymaking on population issues.

The prime minister will chair the council, which will include the chief ministers of all four provinces, the prime minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, the chief minister of Gilgit-Baltistan, and other key stakeholders.

The meeting was informed that social protection programmes would be integrated with family planning initiatives, while women’s education and economic empowerment would remain central to the government’s population management strategy.

Officials also said a nationwide public awareness campaign would be launched to promote balanced population growth, citing Bangladesh, Indonesia, and Iran as examples of countries that have successfully implemented population management policies.

The National Population Council, supported by provincial governments, will oversee the implementation of the nationwide strategy, while its secretariat will be established in the Ministry of Planning.