Egypt's Minister of Health and Population, Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, held a press conference to announce preparations for the Global Conference on Population, Health, and Development.
The conference, which will take place from September 5th to September 8th, will be held under the auspices of President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi.
Representatives from international organizations, ambassadors, leaders of the Ministry of Health and Population, and local and foreign media attended the press conference.
In his remarks, Abdel Ghaffar emphasized that population growth negatively affects development efforts and per capita spending on education, healthcare, and housing, as well as its share of water and agricultural land.
He stressed the importance of considering the current demographic situation and its repercussions on the future, noting that Egypt is currently the fourteenth most populous country in the world with a population exceeding 105 million people.
Abdel Ghaffar also highlighted that Egypt is achieving continuous improvement with a decrease in the number of births from 2.7 million in 2014 to 2.183 million in 2022.
"The total fertility rate has also decreased to 2.85 children per woman in 2021 compared to 3.5 children per woman in 2014. Family planning rates are expected to reach 66.4% in 2021 compared to 58.5% in the 2014 survey," he said.
The minister further mentioned that the global population is projected to reach approximately 8.5 billion by 2030 and 9.7 billion by 2050. It is anticipated that over half of this growth will occur in eight countries, including Egypt.
In turn, UNRC Elena Panova acknowledged the achievements that Egypt has made in terms of health, population, and development initiatives.
She also emphasized that the upcoming International Conference on Population, Health, and Development is a significant opportunity for Egypt and the region to identify the path towards providing equitable access to health services for everyone and to leverage the demographic dividend for the benefit of all.
The conference will feature decision-makers, ministers of health and population from different countries, ambassadors of countries, international partner agencies, UN and USAID, banking entities, entrepreneurs, the media, representatives of civil society, intellectuals, and sponsors of success partners.
The national strategy concerned with population issues will be discussed during the conference and was developed by experts. The strategy includes studying various countries' experiences to reach the optimal method that suits Egyptian society.
Follow the latest news on Google News
