By: Cindy Sagoe
Increased demands for basic needs such as food, shelter, education, employment and healthcare will continue to worsen if the country’s rapid population growth rate is not addressed.
According to the National Population Council, the current global economic turmoil and the country’s population growth rate puts a lot of pressure on social amenities, thereby making it impossible for the country to achieve a sustainable development to improve quality of life. At a media workshop in Accra, Executive Director of the Population Council, Dr Leticia Appiah said the country’s problems can be managed effectively if the population growth rate is reduced to the barest minimum.
She called on policymakers and stakeholders to prioritize issues concerning the country’s dramatic population growth.
Ghana’s population according to the Ghana statistical service is about 31 million and current projections by the world population review shows that the country’s population will continue to grow to about 78.71 million people by 2099. This means that Ghana will more than double its current over the next 80 years. The country is currently growing at a rate of about two percent annually which has slowly decreased from 2.95% in 1985 but still remains high.
Experts say this is worrying because the country is not equipped to handle the constantly increased needs for food, water, education, and employment and other social amenities that come with a growing population.
Experts say rapid population growth is one of the major contributing factors to poverty and under-development, especially in Africa.
The workshop organized by the national population council was therefore aimed at educating media practitioners to effectively communicate with their audience on matters relating to population growth and its rippling effects.
The Executive Director of the National Population Council, Dr. Leticia Appiah said efforts to slow the population growth are rooted in policy formulation and in programs such as family planning, which have the tendency to reduce the number of births and help families properly space out births.
Dr. Leticia Appiah noted that high growth has undermined the quality of life of people and therefore society must strive to provide good life, one with dignity through the achievement of sustainable population growth. She called on all to support the Council.
As of September 2022, the country’s inflation rate was all-time high of 37.2 percent according to the Statistical Service. This is troubling and authorities must act to stop destitution by ensuring that the country’s population is in harmony with its economic resources.
