Ghana may not achieve population growth rate target – Population Officer
Mr Benjamin Whyte, Western Regional Population Officer, on Monday said the country may not be able to achieve the population growth rate of 1.5 per cent this year as targeted by the revised National Population Policy of 1994.
He was speaking at the Regional Coordinating Meeting of the National Population Council at Sekondi.
Mr Whyte said critical analysis of the current situation of family planning revealed that its performance fell short of the objectives set out in the policy.
He said the objectives included reduction of total fertility rate to 4 per cent by 2010 and to 3 per cent by 2020.
Mr Whyte said others were to increase modern contraceptive prevalence rate to 28 per cent by 2010 and to 50 per cent by 2020, and to achieve a minimum birth interval of at least two years for all births by 2020.
He said with the emergence of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the country, family planning activities had been relegated to the background.
Mr Whyte said there was, therefore, the need to refocus attention on family planning to achieve the Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5.
He said 98 per cent of the population had some knowledge about at least one modern contraceptive but that contraceptive prevalence rate currently stood at 19 per cent.
Mr Whyte said traditional values and beliefs about fertility were deeply engrained and individuals and couples harboured fears, myths and misconceptions about the safety of contraceptives.
He said religion had marked influence on the attitudes and behaviour of many people regarding sexuality and reproductive health.
Mr Frank Ofosu-Asante, Deputy Regional Population Officer, said the incidence of new HIV/AIDS infections had increased sharply since the first case was recorded in 1986.
He said to address the problem, key policies and institutions had been put in place, in addition to the development of a national HIV/AIDS policy framework and sectoral plans by the National AIDS Control Programme.
Mr Ofosu-Asante said to date the national response to HIV/AIDS had been effectively coordinated by the Ghana AIDS Commission and other stakeholders.
Source: GNA