Kiribati is set to launch a programme giving its people better access to contraception.

The United Nations Population Fund is in talks with the Kiribati government about ways to curb what it calls concerning population growth.

The Pacific island nation, which has a population of just over 103,000, is in the midst of a population boom that experts say is unsustainable.

Dr Laurent Zessler, the head of the United Nations Population Fund in the Pacific, has been in talks with the government of Kiribati and says progress is being made on tackling the issue.

“We are quite pleased that the government has established a new parliamentary committee called the Population Management And Development Committee,” Dr Zessler told Pacific Beat.

“When you look at the situation in Kiribati you see the young population everywhere. This is something that should be addressed now.”

Kiribati’s growth rate sees about 2000 births and a natural death rate of 400 to 500 annually.

Dr Zessler says population growth is at 2.2 per cent and the fertility rate is almost 4 per cent.

“You have to work with the community, the elders at the village level to talk about modern contraceptive methods,” he said.

Kiribati will be holding a census next year to get a better understanding of its population and demographics.

Dr Zessler says action needs to be taken on population particularly given the country’s issues with rising sea levels.

“In Kiribati, you have no time,” he said.

“You know the climate change issues and this is something Kiribati is concerned about.”

Dr Zessler says the solution lies in educating people about the benefits of contraception and smaller family sizes.

“They have to best address the issue of the right sizing of a family in Kiribati. On average, women have four to five children.

“So we think that it will be better to explain to the families in Kiribati that they have to better plan and take into consideration the number of children they are planning to have.

“This implies also to make better access to contraceptives and also to really work with each community in Kiribati to address this issue of rapid population growth.

“As you know, the land of Kiribati is limited, you know, there’s climate change.

“We feel that it would be better that the authorities will sensitise the population of having the right size family.

“There’s a commitment from the government, from the president himself, from the minister of health, from several community leaders, including on the outer islands. But we feel it is not easy to increase the contraceptive use.

“Due to the structure of society you really have to convince each community that they have to address this issue. So you have to include the man, they discuss with their partner or their wife, how to best plan the right size family.

“The access to television is limited, they have a radio system. But you need really to go I would say door to door, really to address this at the smallest level in the community.

“The right number of contraceptive commodities are present but of course we need to increase the intake, we need to have more people considering modern family planning methods.

He says despite some opposition to family planning efforts by the Catholic church there have been positive developments.

“Different religious groups, including the Catholic church, understand that this population growth, rapid population growth, is very worrisome for the future of Kiribati.

“I would say that in practical terms there is an understanding, there is not opposition that would impair the government to carry out the activities related to better access to contraceptives.”