"Our total birth rate (TFR) has declined, but it is uneven. Since the decline is uneven, we have to create different policies," he told ANTARA after a meeting here on Friday.
For realizing balanced population development in the archipelagic state, the agency cannot generalize the development method since each province has a different population structure, he noted.
For instance, in West Java, the agency is promoting the "Two Children Enough" campaign more since the province has a high number of children being born to a single family, he highlighted.
Meanwhile, in Central Kalimantan, it is promoting campaigns on the importance of mothers spacing births by at least three years as well as the 4Terlalu campaign.
The messages of the 4Terlalu campaign comprise: do not get pregnant at too young an age, do not get pregnant at too old an age, do not get pregnant too frequently, and do not get pregnant too much.
In a number of other regions, the agency is continuing to develop a balanced population by encouraging families to have children with the help of proper planning.
Family planning is not just about the importance of having children since getting pregnant at an age older than 35 years often results in maternal and infant death, Wardoyo said.
He further informed that the TFR rate in Indonesia has continued to decline in accordance with the 2024 target of 2.1.
However, there are regions where the figure must continue to be reduced, such as East Nusa Tenggara whose TFR is 2.9.
Moreover, he said that the agency is still figuring out other ways to promote family planning among families that lack knowledge about its benefits.
For instance, several regions in Papua still believe that family planning will stop the birth of their tribe's successors.
If regional governments declare that their residents want to participate in family planning to reduce extreme poverty, the central government would welcome it, he remarked.
Related news: Early marriage causes child disability, osteoporosis in mothers: BKKBNRelated news: BKKBN lauds high family planning awareness in S Kalimantan
Translator: Hreeloita D S, Fadhli Ruhman
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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