July 11 marks World Population Day and this year marks the 31st year as the inaugural day was celebrated way back on July 11 1989. It was inspired by the public interest in Five Billion Day on July 11, 1987, the approximate date on which the world’s population reached five billion people.Family planning, use of contraceptives, and safe physical relationship remain at the centre of spotlight on World Population Day every year. World Population Day is meant to mark the burdening of global earthly resources due to overpopulation and dense intensity of humankind in specific geographical locations which has its due number of ramifications, economic and otherwise.
As per reports, there were an estimated 7.8 billion people living on Earth as of March 2020, and with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the number is expected to rise due to unplanned pregnancies. The theme this year is based on safeguarding the health and rights of women and girls around the world especially during the time of COVID-19 pandemic. A recent UNFPA research highlighted that if the lockdown continues for 6 months, and there is major disruption to health services, then 47 million women in low and middle-income countries might not have access to modern contraceptives. This would in turn lead to 7 million unintended pregnancies.