UN Population Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs,
with support from the UN Population Fund (UNFPA)
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| UN Population Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, with support from the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) |
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Dakar Site of Third African Population Conference Dakar, Senegal will be the site of the Third African Population Conference, jointly organized by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), the Organization of African Unity (OAU) and UNFPA, in collaboration with the African Development Bank (ADB) and the Union for African Population Studies (UAPS). It will take place from 7 to 12 December 1992. The Conference's overall objective is to sensitize ECA Member States to the crucial role of population in the development process and to encourage the implementation of appropriate Population policies and programmes in line with the provisions of the Kilimanjaro Programme of Action. Background The Conference follows earlier regional population conferences held in Ghana in 1971 and in Tanzania in 1984. The first African Population Conference, held when African Governments still regarded population factors as exogenous rather than endogenous to the development process, highlighted the interrelationships between population trends and socio-economic development in Africa. The Conference not only underscored the need for trained personnel in demography at the national level, but also demonstrated the increased willingness of African Governments to confront pressing population problems . The Second African Population Conference, held in Arusha in January 1984, was an essential part of preparations for the International Conference on Population held in Mexico City in August of the same year. The Arusha Conference culminated in the adoption of the Kilimanjaro Programme of Action, which provided the framework for the design, planning and implementation of Population policies and programmes in Africa. Since its adoption, many Governments have begun to realize the importance of population issues in development planning and socioeconomic development. The Dakar Conference The Third African Population Conference will take place at a time when considerable progress has been made in population and development. But the steadfast resolve of Governments of the region to address population concerns has been thwarted by dwindling international and national resources for population programmes, the re-structuring of national economies, and the emergence of important new issues, such as the environment and AIDS. The Third African Population Conference will offer a forum for Member States to express their views on population problems in their countries; review the progress made in population activities since the adoption of the Kilimanjaro Programme of Action; harmonize their views to provide major input for the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development; formulate recommendations for the next decade; and heighten regional and international awareness of the importance of population issues. " Population, Family and Sustainable Development" is the theme of the Conference. It will focus on the implementation of the Kilimanjaro Programme of Action; the African family in the context of socioeconomic development; strategies for sustainable development; emerging population problems and new orientations and strategies; and population policies and programmes. The ECA Conference of Ministers has established a preparatory committee comprising experts from ECA, IFORD, the Regional Institute of Population Studies (Ghana), CERPOD, UAPS, OAU, ADB, the UN Population Division and UNFPA to facilitate administrative and technical preparations. The Secretariat of the African Population Conference, based at ECA, will provide guidelines for the preparation of the technical reports and substantive and organizational servicing of the Conference. The Conference report, proceedings and recommendations will be available in 1993, prior to the convening in August of the second session of the ICPD Preparatory Committee.