By Bryson Jumbe
Malawi's population has increased drastically over the past years.
As of 1990, the country's population was estimated to be around 9 million.
In the year 2000 the population reached 11.3 million.
Now the population is over 18 million, growing at a rate of 2.7 percent.
As a result [holding all other contributing factors such as plunder of public resources aside], we are left to scramble for infrastructure facilities and other meagre resources.
With every rise in population, land continues to diminish per hectare hence giving rise to cases of encroachment on uninhabitable areas.
The electricity supply entity finds a worthy excuse on the high demand population-driven mismatch to supply.
Primary schools are flooded, some are learning in the comfort of shaded trees.
Public university intake is limited.
Hospitals are crowded with some patients sleeping on floors.
Our correctional facilities too haven't been spared.
The list is endless.
China had (or has) a similar problem. They had to institute a one-child policy per family though it was later reversed.
But the policy resulted in China's population growth rate falling to 0.7 percent as recorded in 2014.
This piece is not advocating for a similar policy, but it's time to approach the matter with the seriousness it deserves.
The increase in population is continuously becoming a burden too huge on Government to bear.
[Population figures are based on UN data]
