The state of our national game, and what is best for its future, has generated a lot of recent debate. But there are some contributing factors that might not have had the attention they deserve. The demography of New Zealand is changing, with major implications for rugby, especially for player participation. The impacts of immigration Read more
New Zealand’s total fertility rate has reached an all-time low. An average of 1.71 children per woman in New Zealand is well below population replacement level and threatens economic growth and the country’s social balance and structure. Population replacement and growth is only coming by way of immigration. The claims come in “Families: Ever Fewer Read more
A spokesman for the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands said that an increase in population, far from being a “nightmare” could mean social and economic growth for the country. Papua New Guinea does not need to promote family planning or practices such as contraception and abortion,” said Fr Giorgio Read more
A former Kiribati president says he is supporting smaller families and is taking the message around the capital Tarawa. Sir Ieremia Tabai, who is the chairman of the committee campaigning for smaller families, is encouraging the people of Kiribati to have two or three children. As overcrowding and unemployment in Tarawa and Betio are serious Read more
The Kiribati Ministry of Health is warning about the country’s soaring population. It has set up a group called HOPE to take its message about the impact of population growth to local communities. The Catholic Church in Kiribati has several times voiced its opposition to family planning programmes. Kiribati is a country that has a Read more
Fr Giorgio Licini, who was quoted by Agenzia Fides report that featured in a recent CathNews piece, says the original article takes a broader view than that provided by the Fides report. He says he would also like to I also clarify that he always refer to artificial and indiscriminate contraception practices. What follows is Read more
Papua New Guinea “does not need to promote family planning or practices such as contraception and abortion,” said Father Giorgio Licini, secretary of the Commission for Social Communications for the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Papua New Guinea (PNG) and the Solomon Islands Licini told the news agency Agenzia Fides that the increase in population in Papua Read more
China’s government has declared it will maintain its one-child policy, but at the same time stripped power from the family planning agency that oversees the regime. “The way to interpret this is that the laws are still in effect, but the judges and the policemen have all been fired,” said Wang Feng, director of the Read more
In the biggest Catholic education expansion in Melbourne since the 1970s, 13 new schools are planned in the outer northern and western suburbs to cope with population growth. According to Catholic Education’s executive director, Stephen Elder, families are choosing Catholic schools because of their own experiences in the system, because they like the faith and Read more
Pacific Island countries have been challenged to to rally against religious conservatism to ensure young people can make informed decisions about sex and pregnancy. The call was made by Papua New Guinea MP Dame Carol Kidu who was among several Pacific politicians attending the New Zealand Parliamentarians’ Group on Population and Development’s annual meeting in Wellington. The focus Read more