200-millionth baby to be born

JAKARTA: A child born on February 4 this year will be the 200- millionth Indonesian and be given an award from the National Family Planning Agency (BKKBN).

State Minister of Population/Head of BKKBN Haryono Suyono said last Friday, to be entitled to the award the baby must meet certain requirements, including that he/she must come from legally and happily married parents, and must be the first, second or third child.

Haryono said at the end of 1996 the Indonesian population reached 199.7 million, making the country the fourth most populated in the world after the People's Republic of China (1.2 billion), India (953 million) and the United States (263.6 million).

The figure was determined through projections by the BKKBN in association with the Central Bureau of Statistics and other institutions in Indonesia, and was adjusted to the low and medium estimates of the United Nations, he said.

The BKKBN succeeded in lowering the population growth rate from 5.6 percent during the First Five-Year Development Plan to 1.6 percent by the end of the Fifth Five Year Development Plan. Currently, each family has an average 2.6 children. (swe)