Govt urges Kenyans to control population growth, enhance living standards

21 Novembre 2017

Nairobi Kenya, November 21 (Infosplusgabon) - A senior government official on Tuesday asked Kenyans  to control the population boom underlining that family planning helps the State provide highly critical services and raising the people's standard of living.

Family planning also helps parents provide higher standards of living for their children, said Irungu Nyakera, Permanent Secretary in the Department for Development and Planning.

Urging Kenyans to control population through the use of the integrated Population, Health and Environment (PHE) system, Nyakera said: ''This will help in addressing population dynamics through voluntary family planning, also improve health outcomes for people and how they interact with the environment.

"When the population grows sustainably, the government can then meet the needs of the people including health, education and employment.”

He observed that this approach is cost effective and reduces the resources needed to implement health and natural resource management.

In rural communities – where three in four Kenyans live and most integrated PHE projects take place – health and livelihoods are inextricably linked with natural resources and food security.

Weak health and transportation infrastructure, especially in remote areas, prevent families from accessing health services, including reproductive health care.

In Kenya’s rural and poor communities, women often have two or more children than they intended to have. As a result, families need more resources to provide for everyone, which can increase poverty at the household and national levels.

In 1989, Kenyan population stood at  21 million before it reached 44 million in 2015. It is projected to reach 64 million by 2030.

Rapid population growth can impact the environment and affect the use of natural resources. In addition, extreme climate events are projected to have a negative impact on Kenya’s economy.

“Integrated approaches to development such as PHE can effectively address population, health, livelihood and natural resource challenges in a holistic way that meets specific community needs," Josephine Kibaru, Director-General of the National Council for Population and Development .

FIN/INFOSPLUSGABON/OAE/ GABON 2017

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