Editor,

Every time government officials talk about population control, I think of factors frustrating their efforts. With Christian-founded health centres against the use of contraceptives: condoms, and pills, the family planning campaign faces a big challenge.

There are known health centres where condom use is completely unheard of. Such health centres emphasise natural methods of family planning which are difficult for especially rural women.

The men of God especially in the Catholic Church should know that a bright future for the country, in this highly competitive world, will depend on the quality of its population.

But big population definitely compromises quality. The clergy are frustrating the government’s population control effort. Probably the government needs to find a way of convincing hard-line clerics to embrace family planning - because the church has got a lot of influence on its followers.

The clergy should give their flock instructions about having small manageable families if they are to live a decent life. While others don’t mind the living standards of their followers, the government needs a happy population.

Apart from the clergy, even men frustrate family planning campaign. While women are embracing family planning, their husbands are busy producing children outside wedlock.

Bring men on board or else the government should criminalise this act of producing outside the wedlock.

Nyamata