The District Health Society, Health and Family Welfare Department, Wokha organised a program on World Population Day at CMO Conference Hall, Wokha on Tuesday under the theme “A pledge to Adopt Family Planning as a Choice for Happiness and Prosperity”.

The objective behind the event was to raise awareness on issues related to overpopulation and the ill effects of rapid population growth that makes it more difficult for low income and lower middle income countries to afford to increase per capita public expenditure that is needed to eradicate poverty, end hunger and malnutrition and ensure universal access to health care, education and other essential services.

Dr Thungchanbeni Patton, DPO (UIP/RCH)

Dr Thungchanbeni Patton, DPO (UIP/RCH), in her keynote address briefed on the guidelines for World Population Day 2023 and the upcoming campaigns to be undertaken by the department. She addresses that like every year, the observance of WPD 2023 will take place in two phases.

The first phase known as the Mobilization Fortnight started on 27 June and concluded its activities on Monday. The second phase known as the Population Stabilization Fortnight begins today and will continue till 24 July 2023 where all the IEC/BCC (Information Education Communication/ Behaviour Change Communication) activities will continue at the District /Block/ Village level. The ASHAs will be involve during the IPC/FGD process, Dr Patton informed. Apart from that, SAARTHI Awareness on Wheel will continue from July till September 2023.

Dr Benchumi Humtsoe, Obs & Gynae, District Hospital Wokha

Theme Speaker, Dr Benchumi Humtsoe, Obs & Gynae, District Hospital Wokha mentioned that the World Population Day is celebrated to raise awareness of global population issues, focusing on the urgency of capping rapid population growth. She asserted that population continue to grow due to advances in modern medicine and reduction in global poverty. She also urged people to be practise family planning and to be aware of issues related to population overgrowth.

Explaining the two key elements of family planning – sexual and reproductive health education and gender equality, Dr Humtsoe said that the former helps in starting conversation on issues like the importance of family planning to enable people to have children by choice and not by chance. She also strongly advocated educating young girls/ adolescents through comprehensive sexuality education programme which she said will enable girls/ couples to prevent adolescent pregnancy which carries greater risk of maternal morbidity and mortality.

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Dr Humtsoe stated that gender equality is one of the key answers to controlling rapid population growth. She said that population growth rate is higher around the world where women are denied basic rights and freedoms like Right to Education, Freedom to work outside home, Right to their own bodily autonomy, and Right to marry whom they want when they want.

When women are educated and are given the freedom and responsibilities to equally contribute, decide how many children to have and when to get pregnant, unwanted pregnancies can be reduced, she added.

Family planning is not population control, but it is human rights, Dr Humtsoe said. She also mentioned that such education program will provide lessons to protect oneself from unplanned pregnancy. She asserted that family planning should be done keeping in mind the children’s present and future.

The programme was chaired by Mhonbeni Using, DPM (NHM), and Vote of thanks was delivered by Echungbeni Tsanglao, DCM (NHM).