The Cabinet Secretary (CS) for the National Treasury and Economic Planning, John Mbadi, has revealed that the demographic landscape has evolved over the past 50 years, presenting countries with varying opportunities and challenges.             Mbadi noted that developed countries are experiencing population ageing and shrinking working-age populations due to low fertility, while developing countries are faced with youth bulge and unemployment challenges arising from rapid population growth.   In a speech read on his behalf by the Principal Secretary for Economic Planning, James Muhati during the opening of the opening of Kenya Population and Development Conference (KPDC) 2025 at the University of Nairobi on Tuesday, March 11, 2025, the CS implored that adjusting population and development policies is therefore increasingly becoming necessary to address these demographic shifts.   He further stated that Kenya, like many other sub-Saharan countries, continues to experience a relatively high population growth rate which has placed significant strains on ecosystems and natural resources, social services, housing, and infrastructure, while contributing to unemployment and environmental pressures.   Equally, the CS observed the improvement in healthcare interventions demonstrating a decline in the maternal mortality ratio from the highs of 488 per 100,000 live births in 2008 to lows of 355 per 100,000 live births in 2019 as well as a reduction in the under-five mortality rate from 90 deaths per 1,000 live births in 1989 to 41 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2022.   Furthermore, the CS acknowledged the reduction in teenage pregnancy from 20 percent in 2008 to 15 percent in 2022.   He emphasized healthcare as one of the pillars of the government development blueprint captured in the Bottom-up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA) and therefore to ensure good health and wellbeing for Kenyans.   Mbadi disclosed that the government developed the Kenya Health Policy 2014-2030 that gives direction to ensure significant improvement in the overall status of health in Kenya in line with the Constitution of Kenya 2010, Vision 2030 and global commitments.   The CS also pointed out that migration and urbanisation continue to be of great concern and have implications on development planning both at national and county levels.   This, he said, is mainly because the majority of migrants are young people aged 20-24 seeking jobs and education opportunities, but the ever-increasing numbers are unable to find decent employment to be able to financially support themselves as well as their families   "The outflow of skills remains a serious human resource problem but of greater concern is the need to safeguard individual rights and to protect those migrating in search of jobs from exploitation and mistreatment," remarked Mbadi.   He explained that the health impacts of climate change, such as food insecurity, affect agricultural productivity and lead to malnutrition and associated health issues, particularly among vulnerable populations such as children and pregnant women.   To mitigate the challenges of climate change, Mbadi affirmed that the government developed the Sessional Paper No. 3 of 2016 on National Climate Change Framework Policy, which aims to enhance adaptive capacity and resilience to climate change and promote low carbon emissions and the Climate Change Act, 2016 to guide the mainstreaming of climate change adaptation into sector planning, budgeting and implementation processes.   On gender responsive policies and programmes, he argued that the Constitution demands greater political representation, especially expounding the democratic scope of women's participation in politics as per Article 27(8) and 81(b), which provide for the state to put in place measures for the implementation of the gender principle that ensures at least a third of each gender in all government posts.   Other legislation includes the Sexual Offences Act 2006 and the Employment Act 2007, among others, where the latter ensures equal opportunities for women in the workplace, including maternity leave policies, while the Children Act 2022 protects children's rights, including provisions addressing child marriage and female genital mutilation.   Reaffirming that Kenya's greatest resource is its people, particularly the skilled youthful population, who can significantly contribute to national development, the CS revealed that the government came up with Access to Government Procurement Opportunities (AGPO), which facilitates enterprises owned by women, youth and persons with disabilities to be able to participate in government opportunities and to ensure meaningful participation by the youth in entrepreneurship.   He urged policy makers, the academia, researchers, policy makers, the private sector, development partners and other stakeholders to bridge the gap through knowledge enhancement, awareness of the population challenges, and the sharing of new approaches and best practices that can inform policy and programme development to enhance the quality of Kenya's population.   By Michael Omondi