Message from the Director

The topic of Population studies has been a much-debated area, especially since the time of Thomas Malthus who posited that population, growing at an exponential rate, will always exceed the food supply and therefore, poverty shall always prevail.

Although advancements in technology and medicine have undermined Malthus’s argument to some extent, but it is an undeniable fact that poverty still exists today, in one form or the other.

Keeping this in mind, I am incredibly delighted to launch the Population Research Center (PRC) at the IBA in collaboration with the Population Council Pakistan. This center aspires to provide, a world-class platform for conducting targeted and in-depth research on issues faced by the poor and marginalized communities in Pakistan. This is fundamental for a healthier society that can collectively contribute to the overall prosperity of Pakistan.

I realize that the goal is quite ambitious but anything less than this will be a hindrance to realizing the outstanding potential of our team, who has worked diligently in ensuring that a collaborative environment such as the PRC can be built where intellectuals from numerous fields can share their expertise and enrich the lives of those who need our support.

Following the mandate, I envision PRC to be the quintessential platform where bold and productive ideas can be shared without any fear and actionable research can be produced so that effective implementation can be achieved and results realized. Indeed, such efforts are the need of the hour given the prevalent conditions of Pakistan.

Not only do we aim to provide meaningful analysis of the current population landscape of Pakistan, but also clearly identify the gaps and recommend policies that can be organically executed, keeping in mind the political and economic structure of the country.

With this, I would like to extend my gratitude to my colleagues who have worked relentlessly to make PRC a reality and also hope that our efforts play a pivotal role in defining the way of Population Research in Pakistan.