By Kodjo Adams
Accra, June 22, GNA – Retired Chief Justice Georgina Theodora Wood has asked authorities to prioritise population management as a cornerstone of the development agenda.
She said the country needed bold, innovative, and sustainable solutions to address high population growth.
She said this in Accra at the book launch titled “From Human Resource to Human Capital: The Essence of Population Management”.
The 139-page book has 10 chapters, including the impact of high population growth on governance, education, economics, health, employment, migration, and others.
Ghana and Africa, she said, were faced with unprecedented population exploration, where the numbers continued to increase yearly, stretching the limits of socio-economic and infrastructural capacities.
She said if the trend continued unchecked, the country would stand the risk of reaching a high point where resources could no longer sustain the population’s needs.
Retired Chief Justice Wood called for the need to harness the full potential of the high population through empowerment to contribute to national development.
That, she stressed, required deliberate investment in the social, educational, economic, and infrastructural sectors to create an enabling environment for every person to thrive.
It is estimated that Africa’s population could double in just 29 years at the current growth rate of 2.4 per cent per year.
Ghana’s population of 31 million, according to the 2021 Population and Housing Census, shows a growth rate of 2.1 per cent per year.
The launch of the book, she stated, was crucial and appropriate and would remind the country of its development trajectory in addressing issues of high population growth.
“The book is not just a call to action; it is an imperative roadmap for the country’s future,” she said.
Dr Leticia Adelaide Appiah, the Author of the book, said the motivation was her practical experience and in-depth knowledge of population issues.
Dr Appiah, who is also the Executive Director of the National Population Council, said the book explored the link between population and development to help make the right decision.
“The fine balance between population numbers and quality, timely investments in all sectors is the essence of population management and literacy,” she said.
She called for a holistic investment in every child, saying every child needed security, healthcare, education, emotional support, and unconditional love for their growth.
The author pledged to donate 10 per cent of the proceeds from the sale of the book to the population and a reproductive health literacy project dubbed ” Breaking Barriers and Bridging Divides”.
Also, another 10 per cent of the sale of the book would support her basic school, ANT 1 primary school in Accra New Town.
“We need to destigmatise population literacy, sex, and sexual health by encouraging open discussions in families and communities.”
Mr Yaw Osafo Maafo, Senior Presidential Adviser, encouraged Ghanaians to buy the book to acquaint themselves with population dynamics.
He said the country needed to link the role of population to the country’s economic development.
GNA