Pakistan, June 30 -- Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Professor Ahsan Iqbal on Monday warned that unchecked population growth remained Pakistan's most critical structural challenge, undermining economic progress and human development, and called for urgent national-level reforms to address the issue.

Addressing the launching ceremony of a book on "Impact of Population Growth on Human Security in Pakistan," based on a study by the Islamabad Policy Research Institute (IPRI), the minister said that without controlling population growth, the country would struggle to achieve sustainable development and improved living standards.

He noted that while Pakistan's economic indicators were approaching those of mi...