Overview
- Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif convened a high-level committee disclosed July 11 that includes Field Marshal Asim Munir, finance minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and planning minister Ahsan Iqbal to examine population-management policies.
- Officials told parliament the committee is considering wider access to contraceptives, tax exemptions for family-planning products and a proposed cut in the population weight of the National Finance Commission formula from about 82% to roughly 50%.
- Health authorities say Pakistan records roughly 6.7 million births a year and estimate wider family planning could lower annual growth by about 1.5 million people.
- Legal and political barriers remain because the 18th Amendment devolved population welfare to provinces, the Ministry of Law warned that Parliament cannot legislate on exclusively provincial subjects, and further consultations with provinces and religious scholars have been ordered.
- The decision has prompted public ridicule on social media and intensified debate over the military’s growing role in civilian policy, while Munir’s expanded diplomatic and economic portfolio raises questions about provincial buy-in and when the committee will issue its recommendations.