Population Concern

With the rapid increase in population, Afghanistan will face a tremendous problem in the future. The government will have to increase its budget in order to provide social services to the new population. This can be exceptionally stressful for the already highly indebted poor country. Ismatullah Ramzi, advisor to the CSO, says that Afghanistan’s population increases by 500,000 annually, adding on to the burden of the small work force.“This is a certainly major issue. The population’s education, health, shelter and food requirements should be seriously considered.”Predictions have been made by the CSO that Afghanistan’s population will grow over 26 million in the next few years, judging from the surveys taken in 2004 and 2005. However, the current population of Afghanistan is roughly around 31 million, well over the estimated value that the CSO has expected. Although the increase in population means higher dependency load, it also provides new opportunities for people. Children will be able to work in farms or assist their parents in other ways that may decrease the weight on their shoulders. The increase in the number of people entering the job market will bring about a slow but steady improvement on its economy. As positive as it seems, there are still many issues regarding the rise in population that need to be resolved before the economy has a chance to thrive. According to Ministry of Health, an Afghan mother gives birth to an average of five children. This is a cultural practice that many Afghan people value: they believe that a large family brings about more help on the land. Also, with a high infant mortality rate of 127.18 deaths in every 1,000 live births of male, and 111.25 deaths/1,000 live births of female, it is within reasons for an Afghan woman to give births to many children. If the limitation on births is still not strictly implemented in its system, Afghanistan will be confronted with a serious economic crisis in the near future. As a result, the rise in population can pose more threats to the country than bring about positive changes to its current state.