Egypte : Pourquoi le PM Mahlab exhorte les Égyptiens à faire moins d’enfants - Ahram Online
Egyptian Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab called on Egyptians to work towards reducing reproduction rates in an effort to curb ongoing population growth that he said further strains a stretched state budget.
Egypt’s population of 87 million has increased threefold in the period between 1950 to 2000, exceeding the country’s economic growth, Mahlab told a population and development conference on Thursday.
Reports reveal that Egyptian population has increased by 25 million since 2000, with a birth rate exceeding 2.6 million over the past year, Mahlab said, further besetting an already ailing economy that faces a crippling budget deficit of around 11 percent of GDP.
Thursday saw the launch of a new 2015-2030 population and development strategy that is geared towards spurring Egyptian families to “bear their responsibility in controlling reproduction rates" so the country can provide quality basic services and job opportunities for all citizens.
Egypt’s economic growth rate over the past three years, marked by political turmoil since the 2011 uprising, was around 2 percent.
The Egyptian finance minister has said the country aims for economic growth of at least 4 percent in the coming year.
“Population growth exceeding economic growth rate, not matched by sufficient natural resources or the ability to provide the basic needs of citizens with high quality…pulls us backward instead of helping us go forward and progress,” Mahlab said.
