UN Population Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs,
with support from the UN Population Fund (UNFPA)
|
| UN Population Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, with support from the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) |
|
"ICPD 94"
International Conference on Population and Development
Cairo, Egypt
5-13 September 1994
ICPD Secretariat, 220 East 42nd Street, New York, NY 10017, USA
Tel: (212) 297-5244 or 5245; Fax: (212) 297-5250
Press inquiries: (212) 297-5023, 297-5030 or 297-5279
E-mail: ryanw@unfpa.org
PRESS RELEASE
22 August 1994
CAIRO CONFERENCE EXPECTED TO ENDORSE A NEW APPROACH LINKING
POPULATION, DEVELOPMENT AND WOMEN'S EMPOWERMENT
Delegates from 180 Countries to Negotiate 20-year Programme of
Action
A new approach to the some of the most urgent issues facing
humanity has emerged from preparations for the International
Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), which opens in
Egypt on 5 September.
Several years of effort by Governments, international
organizations and non-governmental groups have gone into drafting
the 20-year Programme of Action which is to be finalized in
intergovernmental negotiations at the Cairo International
Conference Centre from 5-13 September. A central theme is that
efforts to slow population growth, reduce poverty, achieve
sustainable development and protect the environment are mutually
reinforcing.
In striving for progress in all these areas, the Conference
will emphasize the need to empower women -- to improve their
status, health, education and employment prospects -- and to
guarantee choice in regard to family planning. The draft
Programme of Action's stress on providing family planning as part
of a broader effort to meet overall reproductive health care
needs, particularly of women, is a significant shift in emphasis
from the two international population conferences in 1974 and
1984.
This approach and its formulation are summarized in the
August issue of "ICPD 94", the Conference newsletter. The
newsletter (No. 18) also includes reports on:
+ Recent statements from a number of donor countries
pledging increased support for population-related
programmes.
+ Informal consultations on the ICPD draft Programme of
Action, held at UN Headquarters on 13-15 July.
+ A 19-29 July ICPD preparatory meeting in Budapest,
involving representatives from the countries of Eastern
Europe and the former Soviet Union.
* * *
"ICPD 94" reports that Heads of State or Government will
lead several of the more than 180 national delegations expected
to participate in the Conference. They include President Soeharto
of Indonesia, Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto of Pakistan, Prime
Minister Khaleda Zia of Bangladesh, Prime Minister Tansu Ciller
of Turkey, Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland of Norway, Prime
Minister Maxime Carlot Korman of Vanuatu and Prime Minister Kaamuta
Laatasi of Tuvalu.
Among the other dignitaries expected are Queen Noor Al Hussein
of Jordan, Vice President Al Gore of the United States, and the
heads of most United Nations organizations and programmes.
The ICPD draft Programme of Action is "focused not on
demographic targets, but on seriously addressing the health and
education needs of individuals, especially of girls and women,"
according to Dr. Nafis Sadik, Secretary-General of the
Conference.
The newsletter describes the process in which the draft
Programme was produced, involving input from the UN General
Assembly and Economic and Social Council, intergovernmental
negotiations at three sessions of the ICPD Preparatory Committee,
and numerous regional conferences, expert group meetings and
round tables.
Delegates from over 170 countries at the Committee's third
session (PrepCom III) in April 1994 agreed on well over 90 per
cent of the wording of the last 14 chapters of the draft
Programme of Action. The first two chapters (Preamble and
Principles) in their entirety remain subject to further
negotiation in Cairo.
In addition to Chapters 1 and 2, final negotiation of the
Programme of Action is expected to focus on three groups of
unresolved issues. The first is a set of proposed 20-year goals
in three mutually reinforcing areas (reduction of infant, child
and maternal mortality; universal primary education, especially
for girls; and universal access to family planning information
and services).
Second are estimates of financial resources required in
developing countries to provide reproductive health services
including family planning, prevent sexually transmitted diseases
including HIV/AIDS, and meet population data, policy and research
needs.
Third are definitional issues. Several important terms,
including "reproductive rights", "reproductive health", "safe
motherhood", "fertility regulation" and "family planning" were
repeatedly placed within brackets in the draft Programme of
Action because there was not unanimity at PrepCom III on what
they include or imply. Underlying differences concern proposals
to deal with unsafe abortion as a major health concern, and with
adolescents' needs for access to reproductive health information
and services including family planning.
* * *
Copies of "ICPD 94" are available in English, French and
Spanish from the ICPD Secretariat, 220 East 42nd Street, New
York, NY 10017, USA; tel: (212) 297-5244 or 5245; fax: (212) 297-
5250. The newsletter is also in electronic form on several
computer networks (for information, send e-mail to:
ryanw@unfpa.org).
* * * * *