A member of the Parliament’s Health and Treatment Commission stated that a fertility rate decline below 0.9 signals a serious alarm. This critical situation does not limit itself to Gilan and Mazandaran provinces. It affects the entire nation.
According to Jadeh Makhsoos Information Base, a review of the country’s fertility map reveals no improvement or progress. No defined categories show any positive change. The nation has not even maintained its current status. This practically indicates the inefficiency of processes implementing the 2021 Family Support and Youth Population Law.
Authorities must determine if executive regulations and processes need revision. They must also check if necessary budgets and credits were not allocated. Culturally and socially, we might have failed to strengthen challenges. These challenges relate to family formation, consolidation, childbearing, and community health support.
Each executive body has specific duties. The National Population Headquarters oversees these duties as the highest authority. It must report feedback.
Jadeh Makhsoos reports that the head of the Parliament’s Health and Treatment Commission’s Population Committee reminded Parliament to review population laws. This review should occur in specialized areas. These include the Health and Treatment Commission or related committees. The Youth Population Law is implemented experimentally for seven years. Now is the time to seriously evaluate its results.
The Parliament’s Health and Treatment Commission consistently monitors the Youth Population Law’s implementation. They track population issues in joint sessions. These sessions involve relevant bodies. Participants include the National Population Headquarters, the Planning and Budget Organization, and the Ministries of Health, Labor, and Roads and Urban Development.
If we prioritize among these bodies, two important points emerge. First, executive bodies in the country show a very weak belief in population growth and youth. The Ministry of Health is the only body that has fulfilled its specific duties despite budget constraints. It shows acceptable performance.
However, at the government level, a serious, macro-level view of the population issue does not exist. The issue has been marginalized. It has not found its necessary place.
Zamani Kiasari identified the second weakness with the Planning and Budget Organization. This organization has given no importance to population discussions. It also neglects the necessity of financial support in this area. She emphasized that the Parliament’s Planning and Budget Commission must adopt a serious, forward-looking, and technical approach.
Parliament’s belief and attention exceed some other bodies. Specialized commission activities have led to actions in drafting supportive population laws. She stated these laws now require revision. This revision could include filling gaps, reducing or increasing certain provisions, or amending and refining articles. In any case, it is an absolute necessity to improve the situation.
The continued fertility rate decline to below 0.9 in the law’s fourth year shows several issues. Either the law needs immediate reform, or its executive processes have not been efficient. Alternatively, authorities have not provided necessary funds to bodies. Or, they have not selected suitable custodians and managers to guide these policies.
Each of these factors contributes to the failure of population policy implementation. If these factors were managed together, harmoniously and technically, we would not be witnessing a decrease in family formation and a sharp drop in fertility today. The population issue is multi-factorial. We must consider all these factors simultaneously.
Given the current sensitive conditions, the 12th Parliament must form a special population commission. This commission must specifically address population issues, legal duties, executive processes, and the performance status of bodies. It must also continuously pursue revisions in population resolutions. The member of the Parliament’s Health and Treatment Commission considered the formation of this special commission a serious and urgent necessity to overcome the current situation and reverse the fertility rate decline.