A Re-examination of Fertility Transition in Pakistan

Pakistan is passing through an early stage of fertility transition. The slow-paced transition has been analysed in an earlier study done by Sathar and Casterline (1998), which concludes that the increase in the levels of prevalence has accelerated the fertility transition in Pakistan and as a consequence marital fertility has declined. However, this claim is not supported by the relevant statistics. A re-examination reveals that the effect of contraception is the lowest in the decline of fertility. The rise in marriages and breastfeeding has played a significant inhibiting role in the decline of fertility and marital fertility has remained constant. The structural adjustment programme (SAP), initiated in late 1980s, has led to more poverty and the proportion of never-married has increased in Pakistan as revealed by the Population Census 1998. Labour force participation by the females increased in the post-SAP period. The new economic situation appears to be indirectly responsible for the decline of fertility, and it appears to be consistent with the Malthusian macro theory of fertility

An Analysis of Fertility Change in Pakistan

In most of the developing countries, sustained population growth rates have been a dominant factor in decelerating socio-economic development. The continuing decline in mortality rates has been a major contributor to the acceleration of growth of population in these countries which started in the period following the second World War, and has not abated yet in most of the developing world. There is every likelihood that the population of these developing countries will double in the course of the next generation or so, because of the demographic momentum that is built into their age structure. The rapidly increasing population in low-income countries is not keeping pace with the necessary cultural and technological changes that may help them to raise the standard of living of their masses. Also, high rates of population growth have become a barrier to a successful attainment of the desired socioeconomic development, both quantitative and qualitative

Determinants of Aggregate Fertility in Pakistan

Experiencing high fertility and declining mortality levels, the developing countries are today faced with the problem of relatively high rates of natural increase in their populations. This pace of growth in population, influenced by high fertility levels, impedes the overall development planning. As pointed out in a document prepared by the Planning Commission of Pakistan, 'A vicious circle is set in motion in which high fertility and socio-economic stagnation breed upon each other' [5]. In the developing countries, development programmes including birth control programmes are in operation. The sustained high fertility levels, therefore, call for more insights into the mechanisms operating in the society and influencing fertility. Studies of fertility behaviour are conducted at both micro and macro levels. The difference between micro and macro is a matter of emphasis rather than one of kind, and both approaches are concerned with each level of social aggregation. Macrolevel studies describe the level and pattern of change resulting from the ongoing socio-econornic development in the society as a whole and do not explain variations in fertility at the household level [12]. However, development programmes, which are implemented at aggregate levels defined by geographical boundaries, influence the population in terms of socio-economic status and fertility behaviour. There are many factors which affect human fertility individually or collectively. Attempts have been made to identify these factors, and conceptual frameworks have been developed to explain the causal hypotheses. In this context mention may be made of the demographic transition theory, which is often applied to study fertility behaviour

Poonam Smith-Sreen. Accountability in Development Organisations: Experiences of Women s Organisations in India. New Delhi: Sage Publications, 1995.297 pp.Hardcover. Indian Rs 295.00.

There has been a transition in NGO actIVItIes over time, from the basic welfare orientation to various fields of development. This has been mainly due to the failure of the previous development strategies that emphasised on rates of economic growth, on the assumption that the top-down approach would initiate the process of trickle-down benefits to the poor. The assumed linkages were conceived without a knowledge of the working of the inter-linkages of cultural, social, political, and economic structural processes which led to the failure of such strategies. There appeared to be a need to evolve a workable methodology of development which could replace the top-down strategy. As a consequence of this search, a strategy of grassroots mobilisation of the recipient population was formulated so that they could take part in the process of development in terms of problem identification, project implementation, and its monitoring and evaluation. This strategy is popularly known as community participation. There are two important elements in this participatory approach: a two-way active communication between the community and the NGO to build trust and understanding, and the empowerment of the community towards decision-making for their own needs. This participatory approach is still viable and is a source of social change and development in many countries. The author of this book promises an advancement in this type of development strategy and suggests an alternative model and its method of accountability

Fertility Preferences and Contraceptive Use in Pakistan

Pakistan, established in 1947, is currently experiencing one of the highest growth rates of population in the world. If the 1972-81 intercensal growth rate continues, the population size would be approximately 95 million in 1985 and 150 million by the year 2000. The growing population size is already straining the scarce resources of the country and will further aggravate the level of socia-economic development; for the family planning programme which was launched to check the pace of population growth has not produced any tangible results. The major criterion for the successful implementation of a programme is that there should exist an effective demand in the society which should be matched equally with the supply. In Pakistan, the reverse has been experienced so far. The programme has been very active in maintaining an adequate supply of contraceptives without perceiving the demand situation. For the desired achievement of a programme three preconditions deduced from the demographic transition theory have been set forth by Coale [3]. The demand aspect of these includes perceived choice of an individual and favourable socio-economic conditions for declined fertility. In order to facilitate transformation of the perceived choice into behaviour, the availability of appropriate contraceptive technology is essential

Erosion in Steam General Tubes in Boiler and ID Fans in Coal Fired FBC Power Plant

The FBC (Fluidized Bed Combustion) is a technique used to make solid particles behave like fluid and grow very fast for the power generation using low grade coal. Due to its merits, first time this technology has been introduced in Pakistan by installing 3x50 MW power plants at Khanote. Fluidized beds have long been used for the combustion of low-quality, difficult fuels and have become a rapidly developing technology for the clean burning of coal. The FBC Power Plant at Khanote has been facing operational and technical problems, resulting frequently shut down of generation units, consequently facing heavy financial losses. This study reveals that due to the presence of high percentage of silica in the lime stone that are further distributed in the bottom ash, fly ash and re-injection material, the generation tubes in the boiler and wings/blades of ID (Induced Draft) fans were eroded. In addition, filter bags were also ruptured; resulting frequent shut down of power plant units

Gibberellic acid supplements mitigate the sodium chloride effects on onion seed germination and its physio-chemical attributes

The mitigative effect of gibberellic acid (GA3) for salt (NaCl) stresses on seed germination attributes of onion (Allium cepa L.) cultivar Nasarpuri was assessed. Seeds were moisturized with NaCl (0-, 100- and 200-mM) and GA3 (250 ppm) before and after sowing for seed germination in 1st week than in 2nd week, GA3 sprayed once foliarly and NaCl in rooting region. At the end of 1st week, an increase in seed germination rate was observed in seeds supplemented with GA3 from control (85.0%) to 97.5% and from NaCl stressed seeds (72.5% and 50.0%) to 85.0% and 62.5%, respectively (p ≤ 0.05). This reduction in seed germination was caused by salt stresses after 96th hours of sowing, inhibition in GA3-biosynthesis GA3 and delay in α-amylases activation observed in salt stressed seed cultures. The seedling vigor index (SVI) was observed higher in foliarly GA3 sprayed cultures of both control as well as saline stressed cultures. The seedlings supplemented with GA3, decrease in malondialdehyde (MDA), H2O2, Na+/K+, Na+ and Cl- contents, while increases seedling biomass, chlorophyll contents, total proteins, and sugars in NaCl stressed seedlings. Interestingly, GA3 also increased (p ≤ 0.05) the osmoprotectants in seedlings including abscisic acid (AsA), carotenoids, phenolics and proline contents to depict in stress alleviation. This study may be concluded by the fact that GA3 minimizes salinity stresses on seed germination as well as further seedling growth with the increased production of organic osmoprotectants as saline stress neutralizers