High population growth: Take care of your family

By then, the land might be scarce, and Tanzanians will have to get used to like high-rise apartment buildings.

Imagine the only affordable houses will be apartments in high-rise buildings.

Today, in cities families can host relatives for years, but it will become difficult as the cost of living rises, so the nuclear family takes root.

Back to today, back to reality. A few years ago, National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) allowed any relative (including extended family members) to be in the list of health beneficiaries.

Today, parents, children, and spouse are the only beneficiaries; a reflection of how things change as the population rise.

The recently released census data shows that Tanzania’s population is 61.7 Million people (31.7M women and 30M men). Nigeria beats us hands down, topping up over 200 Million.

Ethiopia and Egypt, each is over 100 Million people. Available data indicate that we are slightly above South Africa.

If the population is an examination result, we would have beaten South Africa to be number five! In Form Six National Exams Results, students in the top 5 usually meet the threshold of going to university. The top five to top ten are coveted positions!

But then, if we are to look at the World Population of 8 billion people, we are such a small number! Seven countries make up half of that 8 billion people; China, India, America, Indonesia, Pakistan, Nigeria, and Brazil.

The high population can be a blessing or a curse. For instance, as a blessing, the population is a resource for increasing agricultural production.

A high population triggers more innovative ideas on farm preparation, planting, food storage mechanisms, workforce etc.

Likewise, a high population is a blessing when the economy grows fast with more jobs created.

On the other hand, the high population can be regarded as a curse (a problem) when it increases faster than the rate of food production. When that happens, food will not be enough to feed that population. High populations increase demands over land (area for settlements, cultivation, etc.), hence creating more pressure on land leading to environmental degradation, poverty, and famine.

Likewise, when there is a high population, while economic growth is low, production is low, no jobs etc, such a population becomes a big problem as poverty looms.

President Samia Suluhu Hassan was candid that with the increased population, it was necessary to make reforms in policies to match challenges and increase efficiency in public service delivery. Previously, President Samia urged women to use birth control to reduce the high birth rates. Her concern is that the rise in births can impede service delivery to the large population. She cited the Buselesele ward in the Geita region, where over 1,000 children were born monthly at a small health centre.

With the vast population, the cost for public sector service provision in health, education, infrastructure, etc., become so high. If the economy is not growing at high space, poverty levels rise in sectors that employ majority citizens.

It is essential to prepare for the population boom and secure the future of our generations at individual and family levels!

Let’s also learn from China, which imposed a one-child policy from 1980 to 2015 but it has now switched to a three-child policy.

Which way is Tanzania controlling population growth? The policymakers will determine a lot.