By Durrell Namasani
Realizing the important role of population in sustainable development, Members of Parliament in Malawi have decided to reactivate the Population Caucus which is now renamed Population and Sustainable Development Caucus (PSDC)
The Launch of the Caucus took place at Bingu International Convention Center in Lilongwe. The Caucus was launched under the theme “Population and Sustainable Development: The Role of the National Assembly”
In attendance were Speaker Catherine Gotani Hara, Miranda Jabifor, Country Rep- UNFPA,Prof. Sosten Chitha, Regional Programme Director,LEAD Dr. Eliya Zulu, Executive Director, AFIDEP and other members of Parliament
UNFPA Miranda Jabifor said she has underscored the critical need of giving pop issues the pride of place and fulfilling ICPD25 promises by 2030. Speaker of Parliament Gotani Hara said “When women & girls are empowered w/ education, family planning comes naturally,”
Other parliamentarians to speak were Ben Phiri, who is the vice chairperson of the PSDC. He said as the Caucus was being relaunched they should focus on dealing with population from a management point other than control. He said How we handle the issue of population has a higher impact on the growth our economy
“Honourable Members can testify to the numerous demands we have in our constituencies from infrastructure to social services. These are demands that neither we nor government’s budget can afford. If left unattended, we shall wake up one morning and have our government budget failing to provide for essential social services” said Phiri
