UNITED NATIONS POPULATION INFORMATION NETWORK (POPIN) UN Population Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, with support from the UN Population Fund (UNFPA)

Message from the Secretary

Message from the Secretary-General of the International Conference on 

Population



 It gives me great pleasure to introduce POPULATION 94, the newsletter of 

the International Conference on Population and Development, 1994.  In the 

two years leading to this international community abreast of the 

Conference's important preparatory process and pre-conference activities 

worldwide.



	The United Nations Economic and Social Council's decision in 1989 to 

convene an international conference on population was a timely response to a 

demand for action to address the triad of rapid population growth, 

increasing environmental degradation and pervasive poverty. The 

international conference will take place at a time of heightened global 

concern for sustainable development, a time in which a rapidly changing 

world needs concerted action



No lasting solution to problems of the environment and poverty can be found 

without resolving population issues.  Refining strategic population and 

development goals, particularly at the operational level, extending the 

outreach and effectiveness of population programmes, and securing 

commitments and resources over the long term will pave the way for sustained 

and sustainable development.

Much has changed since the International Conference on Population in Mexico 

City in 1984. On the positive side, population policies have been almost 

universally adopted as integral parts of development issue has largely been 

overcome; and developing countries, including those in Africa, now have a 

decade or more of experience in formulating and and adopting population 

policies.  Much progress has also been made in fertility reduction in some 

parts of the world.



 However, success in some countries has fostered some unjustified 

complacency.  Human numbers are growing faster than ever before; stress on 

the environment continues to increase migratory pressures have grown; and in 

some regions, efforts to balance population and development have been held 

up by economic problems.



 The International Conference on Population and Development, 1994, will 
remind the international community that population problems are among the 

most serious threats to the attainment of sustained growth and sustainable 

development.



 The Conference will address other issues, including continued high rates of 

population growth in Africa and in parts of Asia and Central America; the 

role and status of women as critical factors in demographic change aand 

socioeconomic development; the aging of populations and changes in family 

and household structures; rapid urbanization in the developing world and 

sharp increases in the number of international migrants and refugees; and 

finally, the complex interrelationships among populations, resources, 

environment and development.

The 1994 Conference will strive to transform the heightened awareness of 

current and emerging population issues into operational strategies for 

effective and comprehensive programmes. The Economic and Social Council has 

instructed the Conference to adopt a consolidated and updated set of 

recommendations to guide the implementation of population policies and 

programmes. In preparing the draft of these recommendations the World 

Population Plan of Action the 88 recommendations adopted in Mexico in 1984 

for the further implementation of the Plan, as well as other relevant 

documents will be taken into account. The draft recommendations will be 

reviewed at the third session of the Preparatory Committee before they are 

presented to the Conference for its consideration.

The 1994 Conference is not just about policies and goals, demographic change 

and development at the macro level  It is also about improving the quality 

of life at the individual level. We must remember the women, men and 

children throughout the world who suffer from hunger, poor health and 

premature death; the women and adolescent girls who die or are disabled due 

to inadequate reproductive health services; the large numbers of children, 

especially girls, are out of school; the families crowded into urban slums; 

or the migrants from rural areas whose land holdings have become too 

fragmented or eroded to provide a living.  Making family planning as widely 

available as possible to both women and men, improving maternal and child 

health, and advancing women's status, education and options can contribute 

to slower, more balanced population growth and a sustainable future.



Population change is slow and the beneficial effects of population policies 

and programmes are felt over the long term. Our challenge is to maintain our 

commitment over the long term, to ensure a better quality of life for future 

generations.



I hope that Population 94 will contribute to increased awareness of 

population issues and to the success of the International Conference on 

Population and Development,



Dr. Nafis Sadik

Secretary-General

International Conference on Population and Development 1991