Conclusion

Abstract

Global discourses on population have material and symbolic effects on local politics, service provision, and reproductive decision making. The effects of such discourses can be seen in the narratives between donors and the state, between service providers and their clients, and between husbands and wives. Meanings are negotiated, deals are struck, and families are planned within a global discourse, yet everyone is local somewhere. Not surprisingly, discontent emerges at the interface of such a predetermined, static, and homogeneous solution to complex and contingent local problems.