GHANA AND POPULATION CONTROL

More than two centuries ago, a British Reverend by name Thomas Robert Malthus, published his famous essay on The Principle of Population in which he formulated some predictions concerning the geometrical increase in population as against the arithmetical increase in food production. Later, he asserted that food increase would not be capable of marching the tremendous increase of population; therefore, drastic measures had to be taken to reduce the growth of population in his native country of Great Britain. Though his theory was later found to be inaccurate, still this famous work sparked off serious researches into population study in the kingdom.

Ghana's population growth is on the increase, and it seems this manner of population increase should also be taken serious and consequently sounds the alarm that something fruitful should be done to put it in check or else adequate plans should be initiated to help it become stable. Here, in this essay, I argue that though the growth of population is a good thing, especially, for any country because it says well that a particular country could get labour for its emerging or well-established industries and thereby enhancing its tax revenues, appropriate manner should be taken to control the growth in the country at the moment. This researcher believes that family planning is a good thing that should be embarked upon by the Government; this should be in a serious manner to ensure that parents also should become attentive and responsible to their children they deliver into this world.

Any country that intends to embark upon industrialisation should be aware of the need to rationalise on everything the country possesses right from its resources that are in the country; already mined or to be mined. This country also needs to become meticulous about the human resources it possesses in the country. It is possible that the need of the latter may be in shortage in which case appropriate measures would be addressed to discover how the increase of these vital resources could be undertaken. On the other hand, probably because of the current revenue and resources, which may not be substantial or adequate, the need may arise that they would require to be controlled. Population control is a good thing for the country that wants progress, to be capable of making fair share of the resources in the country to its citizens.

The usual help Census data provide enables the authorities to plan for certain domestic resources, which the citizens due the proper functioning in the country, they are required to enjoy. For example, with these data countries are capable of planning how many new schools the authorities need to be built in the country to ensure fairness and equitable distribution. These numerous information is also essential for the building of new hospitals and clinics to ensure proper health care for the population. In fact, Census data should be the greatest need of every responsible government to help counsel the utmost need to embark on infrastructure developments which are the main backbone and prerequisite for successful development leading to industrialisation in the country. In short, the regularisation of population should go hand in hand with the smooth development and progress in any country in question. That is all the more reason why a country like Ghana, that has serious intention of reaching its goals of sustainable development in the near future, should make it necessary to integrate these factors with regards to population into its development programmes.

The health and social sectors usually become a burden on governments that neglect these vital parts of development. If one does not control the population or take regularisation methods necessary, how could one be capable of providing adequate care to its citizens? How should governments be in a position to plan activities such as, the building of theatre centres, football games centres, physical activities centres, swimming pools centres, hockey ball centres, games centres for the elderly in the societies, dance hall centres, day-care centres, and etc. These social activity centres are in fact the responsibilities of the local governments but still it is the supreme responsibility of the government in power and private entrepreneurs that these important social amenities are initiated and accomplished in the country.

In Ghana, for example, these social amenities must be developed for the citizens in the regional capital cities first, such as Koforidua, Ho, Kumasi, Bolgatanga, Tamale, and others. These are not developments that require foreign exchange nor big loans from the IMF and other international organs, even though their help should not be neglected if they are offered in the form of aids. This has to do with superb organisation ability and the vision to find appropriate ways whereby citizens should be happy and thrive well in their respective environments in the diverse parts of country. The embarkation of these social amenities in the regional capital cities and beyond should be capable of creating temporary as well as permanent jobs in these vicinities for the citizens. Citizens will pay before they enjoy some of these activities in their leisure hours. It is not worth that politicians as well as civilians in the country keep money intended for developments in the banks or pockets. Use these monies to invest in these simple businesses and developments that will keep you busy as a politician and make other people happy in the communities you live or hail from.

This advice I give to Parliamentarians, Ministers of States, Council of States, District Secretaries, University lecturers and professors, and politicians as a whole. Also, I strongly advice the ignorant people in the country and also to the governments that come and go that when people have acquired money irrespective of where they procured them from, and if they have invested in a domestic business that had managed to employ at least 5 workers (pay taxes regularly), the authorities should never dare to question (or investigate) this person or citizens where they got the funds from. Unless there is a formal complain that this person is not paying taxes or misusing some workers in his company. If this requirement were given, the country would go forward and be capable of going at a faster rate in its development than one can think of. I have been told this was one of the major reasons that led to the collapse of many businesses when the present government came to power. Once people are doing their businesses they should be allowed to pursue that unless there is a formal complain made by someone. Even, when the latter is the case, government officials should never move in to disrupt this business, but must first make preliminary inquiry that should not get out of hand for these workers to disrupt their businesses until this inquiry which should not publicised have been successfully conducted and found out that the complain was true.

In connection with population control, it has come to our notice that some people do not plan their family and, therefore, it leaves many children running around who have no one to cater for them. I think that here the responsibilities should rest on parents that become careless or disregard the idea of planning their families. A suggestion that the government should advice members of the public and families to consider having a maximum of five children would be ideal one. Those families that intend to have more than five children should therefore seek permission from an authority to be set up by the government later. When permission is to be sought, these individual families have to provide their income and resources and should be capable of providing other conditions as to whether they have house themselves or rented a place where they shall live with these children they want to have. Permission to have more than five children should be given on condition that these families (a husband and wife or partners) have provided these requirements above prior to them being issued a notification in the form of a written certificate to bring forth more than five children.

This idea is not to be a force where people will be brutalised because of their failure to provide the certificate that permits them to bear more than five children. This should be done with care and love, and should not motivate the authorities to punish any one found guilty of that. This is not a crime committed. With time and also given appropriate education, citizens would come to understand that it is for their own good that we practice this birth control to enable the government plan for the whole society in which it cares much.

Finally, it should be possible for people to have direct contact with the family planning authorities without going through problems. The latter should make themselves available in all time in certain locations that shall provide proper care and advice to the citizens in need. They should counsel parents, patients, and those children in need of care but have no one to lead them. It is high time the women in the country organised themselves in the search for their rights and their responsibilities to their families in the country. They should see to it that no woman or a young girl dies in private because it wants to commit an abortion. Every individual has the right to be helped concerning her own decision to have or not to have children; moreover, what she wants to do with her life.