December 24, 2002	Tuesday	Shawwal 19, 1423

PESHAWAR, Dec 23: Due to alarming increase in the total national population, Pakistan needs $4 billion additional annual investment to maintain its current level of GNP per capita.

Making a presentation on “Population, development and Pakistan: experiencing the population equation” during a workshop here on Monday, Dr Mohsin, UNFPA’s Islamabad-based advocacy adviser, said the net annual addition to the total national population of the country required $4 billion additional investment in Pakistan every year to maintain its current GNP per capita level of $430.

Pakistan is experiencing 3.1 million net addition every year in its 146 million total population making the country all set to get doubled its population in the year 2035.

As 3.1 million people are adding up to the total national population every year, Pakistan, Dr Mohsin said, needed $1.3 billion to help them have GNP per capita of $430.

In this way, said the UNFPA expert, additional $4 billion investment was required to create additional GNP of $1.3 billion to the per capita at the current level.

“Going by the simple economic’s rule, you need to invest three dollars to earn one (dollar),” said the UNFPA adviser while making the presentation on the first day of the two-day orientation workshop titled “Population, development and Pakistan”.

The two-day workshop, aimed at enhancing awareness level about issues related to population among the media men, is being jointly organized by UNFPA, Peshawar Press Club and ministry for population welfare.

In the case of NWFP, where 500,000 people are adding up every year, an investment of $156 million is required every year to help the province have per capita income of $312 — the level prevalent in NWFP.

Similarly, the province would need additional $470 million investment every year to create additional GDP of $156 million to the per capita at the current level.