Sawan Khaskheli Islamkot
Pakistan’s lowest district in terms of human development indicators, is one of the areas of Pakistan where the teenage pregnancy rate is recorded alarmingly high at 59 percent.
This was revealed during an MoU ceremony aimed at improving family planning service in District Tharparkar.
The MoU was signed between the Population Welfare Department (PWD), the Government of Sindh (GoS), and Thar Foundation, the CSR arm of the Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company (SECMC).
Rehan Baloch, Director General, PWD-GoS, and Naseer Memon, General Manager Thar Foundation (TF) signed the agreement on behalf of their organizations.
Provincial Minister for Health, Dr. Azra Fazal Peechoho, Minister for Energy, Imtiaz Shaikh and Member Provincial Assembly of Sindh and Chairman Standing Committee on Health, Qasim Soomro also witnessed the ceremony.
Kazim Jatoi, Secretary PWD-GoS, Mr. Zahid Abbasi, and Dr. Abdul Bari of Indus Hospital were present at the ceremony.
Under the MoU, Population Welfare Dept will provide commodities and technical support to Tar Foundation to provide family planning services in Tharparkar, and Indus Hospitals will implement the family planning program on behalf of the Thar Foundation.
Thar Foundation will also undertake social mobilization in local communities to benefit from this service.
The parties shall jointly collaborate in establishing and improving the family planning network at various hospital(s) of Tharparkar district and setting up Thar Foundation’s mobile facilities.
To increase Contraceptive Prevalence Rate (PCR) in the target areas, awareness of Family Planning shall be done to bring in maximum married women of reproductive age (MWRA) in the Family Planning network.
The PWD will provide training, and expertise in Family Planning techniques, certify medics.
