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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Meeting to Highlight Pacific Islands' Perspectives Ministers and senior officials from Pacific Island countries and territories will meet in Port Vila, Vanuatu, from 6-10 September to prepare a South Pacific perspective on the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), 1994. The Ministerial Meeting on Population and Sustainable Development in the Pacific will draw ministers and high-level officials from 13 Pacific Island countries. At the August 1992 Asian and Pacific Population Conference in Bali, Indonesia, Pacific Island countries emphasized the need for a follow-up meeting which would highlight the distinct perspective of their sub region in the preparations for the Cairo Conference. The islands of the Pacific are sparsely populated by global standards: Papua New Guinea is the largest, with a population of almost 4 million; Fiji is a distant second with one million; and several Pacific Island countries count their total populations in the tens not hundreds of thousands. Nevertheless, most of the countries and territories are experiencing either very high population growth rates or major migration within and outside the region. Severe pressure on agricultural land and water resources, as well as the growing demand for health care, education and jobs, places most Pacific Island nations in a situation similar to that of larger Asian, African and Latin American countries in regard to population, the environment and development. With population growth rates among the highest of any countries, several Pacific Island countries will double their populations in the next 20 years. Most have very young populations, with under- 15 year olds totaling between 30 and 45 per cent; in one country more than 50 per cent of the population is under 15. Pacific countries will be working closely with their regional organizations, the South Pacific Forum and the South Pacific Commission, to prepare a common position for the 1994 Conference.