The Minister of Health and Population, Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, stated that the issue cannot be reduced to numbers or consider people as a burden.

Speaking at the regular session of the Arab Council for Population and Development, the official recalled that the world surpassed eight billion inhabitants last month. The figure will increase to 8.5 billion in 2030 and 9.7 billion by 2050, he stressed.

Abdel Ghaffar said that the focus should not be limited only to numbers and growth rates, but also to opportunities for progress and associated development challenges, saying that the Egyptian government pays great attention to the issue and therefore promotes a number of strategies.

As an example, last February he cited the launch of the national project for the development of the family aimed at controlling population growth.

The Information and Decision Support Center of the Cabinet revealed recently that Egypt will have a population of 160 million by 2050, that is, currently, nearly 56 million more.

President Abdel Fattah El Sisi has repeatedly warned upon the rapid population growth, calling attention in that direction for a decrease in birth rates.

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