Pakistani News

New Delhi, April 20: Pakistan today sought India’s help for a joint venture to manufacture condoms to control its ballooning population.

And to inspire citizens to contribute to the effort, Islamabad plans to use cross-border sports couple Sania Mirza and Shoaib Malik as brand ambassadors.

“We are keen to have a joint venture with an Indian firm to manufacture condoms or work out a mechanism for direct import from New Delhi,” Firdous Aashiq Awan, Pakistan minister for population welfare, told an event organised by business chamber Assocham today.

Awan said Islamabad spent millions of dollars buying the contraceptives from third countries through the UN. “If we can have some kind of an arrangement, then it would benefit both countries,” she said.

According to a draft population policy, Pakistan’s population is estimated to grow from 169 million to 220 million by 2020 if measures to check the birth rate are not adopted.

Awan, who met health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, said there was a lot to learn from India’s experiences in population control.

The minister said tennis star Sania and cricketer Shoaib would be declared brand ambassadors of Pakistan’s population welfare ministry. “When they reach Pakistan... they will be designated brand ambassadors at an official function,” Awan said.

The minister, who had attended the wedding in Hyderabad, said it had helped melt the “glacier” created between India and Pakistan after the Mumbai terror attack.

Asked if she would like Sania to plPay for Pakistan, Awan said: “It is up to Sania.”