Rafiullah Mandokhel
Quetta,(Parliament Times):The Population Council, with support from UNFPA, convened a meeting of the CSOs Coalition on Population to strengthen government-CSO partnerships and ensure the implementation of the Council of Common Interests (CCI) National Action Plan remains a national priority. The meeting sought to solidify the partnership between the government and civil society, aiming to institutionalize a structured interface that keeps the Council of Common Interests (CCI) endorsed National Action Plan on Population at the forefront of the national agenda.
Opening the session, Dr. Ali Mohammad Mir, Senior Director Programs, Population Council, stated “The coalition serves as a vital bridge to feed grassroots realities into government policy,”. “By creating this synergy, we ensure that both sectors can leverage each other’s unique strengths to effectively address Pakistan’s demographic challenges.”
The meeting provided a platform for member organizations—including Aahung, ACT, Bedari, Greenstar Social Marketing, HANDS, ISYD, MSS, PODA, Rahnuma-FPAP, SDPI, SOGP, SPO, and Khwendo Kor—to share critical field-level insights ranging from reproductive health rights to youth development.
The meeting was also attended by representatives from organizations such as RSPN, MAHEC, NRSP, Taraqee Foundation, AMAN, Hujra, Search for Justice, Jhpiego, HDF, and the White Ribbon Alliance.
Complementing these civil society efforts, provincial representatives reported significant strides in service expansion. Mr. Muhammad Shahid Nusrat, Director (Administration & Finance), Health and Population Department, Punjab, highlighted the province’s successful integration of Population Welfare into Health, which has tripled service delivery points to 6,100. “By merging our population welfare infrastructure with existing health services, we have created a seamless continuum of care for the public,” he noted.
Similarly, Mr. Syed Imran Shah, Director (Planning, Monitoring & Evaluation), Population Welfare Department, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, shared that funding in the province has doubled since 2019. “Our commitment is visible in the 120 new Family Welfare Centers established in merged districts, bringing essential services to previously underserved populations,” he remarked.
Highlighting the cultural dimension of the work, Dr. Afifa Akram, Deputy Director (Technical), Population Welfare Department, Balochistan, discussed the province’s success in training Ulamas and male social mobilizers. “In a province with unique geographical and social barriers, engaging community leaders is the only way to champion family planning as a shared social responsibility,” she explained.
The CSOs Coalition issued a unified set of urgent demands to federal and provincial governments to bridge persistent gaps in service delivery and accountability, including calling on the government to support the private sector in delivering reproductive health and family planning services. Central to these demands was the call for fiscal reform, specifically advocating for a revision of the NFC resource distribution formula to prioritize social indicators over population size.
The coalition also demanded the immediate allocation of Rs. 10 billion to the Population Fund, as outlined in the CCI National Action Plan. On the legislative front, members urged provincial assemblies to expedite pending Reproductive Health and pre-marital counseling bills, as stipulated under the legislation component of the National Action Plan.
Furthermore, the coalition took a firm stance on economic barriers, demanding the removal of taxes on contraceptives. Members demanded to ensure that essential health products are protected from taxation to reach the most vulnerable segments of our society.
They emphasized that the population agenda must be a multisectoral effort, integrating health services with social change by promoting the Tawazun narrative, which underscores the balance between population and resources.
In his concluding remarks, Dr. Ghulam Farid Khan, Programme Analyst M&E (SRH) at UNFPA, lauded the coalition as a vital accountability forum, reminding stakeholders of the massive economic return on these investments.
“A single dollar invested in family planning yields 26 dollars in broader developmental gains,” Dr. Khan asserted.
“The CSOs Coalition must continue to provide a collective voice during pre-budget sessions to ensure that SRHR legislation and funding are not just promised but delivered”, he added.
The meeting closed with a collective reaffirmation to align community-level actions with CCI targets, ensuring that policy promises to translate into measurable, life-changing results for families across the country.