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 NEWS
A Newsletter of the UNFPA Task Force on ICPD Implementation
No. 5, September 1996
CAIRO PLUS TWO
By Dr. Nafis Sadik
This second anniversary of the International Conference on
Population and Development (ICPD) presents an appropriate
opportunity to take the pulse of the implementation process and
assess how the Programme of Action, adopted by consensus in
Cairo, is being translated into operational initiatives. There is
now a broad recognition that respect for human rights and a
commitment to the empowerment of women are essential messages of
Cairo. Also, there is a growing realization that simultaneous
investment in all social sectors is necessary if the ICPD goals
and the overarching objective of sustainable development are to
be achieved.
On balance, I am greatly encouraged that the commitment and
momentum which characterized the lead up to Cairo and the
Conference itself are carrying over to the implementation phase.
In almost all developing countries, an impressive array of
activities is under way to align policies and programmes with the
new paradigm of population and development that emerged from the
Conference. At the international level, various intergovernmental
groups, global and regional, have used the ICPD Programme of
Action as a template in recasting their policy and programme
directions.
The UN system has expanded its collaboration at both the
headquarters and the field level. In particular, the work of the
inter-agency task forces on ICPD implementation and on Basic
Social Services for All has been instrumental in furthering
coordination among various UN organizations at the country level,
thus augmenting government efforts to operationalize the
Programme of Action. Non-governmental organizations (NGOs),
especially grass-roots groups, have intensified their efforts to
ensure that the promise of Cairo takes hold and flourishes in
local communities.
Many countries report that they are progressing in their attempts
to place family planning in the broader perspective of
reproductive health. Almost immediately after the Conference, the
Government of Mexico created a General Directorate of
Reproductive Health, which includes a special unit to ensure that
all activities in this sector are grounded in a gender
perspective. Several Sub-Saharan countries are focusing on the
maternal mortality aspect of the reproductive health continuum.
For example, Uganda has initiated a pilot project to identify
potential problem deliveries and arrange for the early transport
of women with pregnancy complications to properly equipped health
posts. Since Cairo, there has been increased emphasis on quality
of care and responsiveness to users. For example, India has
adopted a new system of performance indicators replacing the
system of targets and quotas it had relied on for several
decades. Responding to the ICPD's emphasis on youth, several
countries have adopted reproductive health initiatives geared to
the needs of this age group -- including Ghana, Haiti, Kenya,
Namibia, Sri Lanka and Viet Nam.
Over the past two years, UNFPA has been working closely with
countries to facilitate their attempts to put in place programmes
designed to achieve the ICPD's time-bound goals: universal
primary education, with particular attention to eliminating the
gender gap; a major reduction in infant, child and maternal
mortality; and universal access to quality reproductive health
services, including family planning. In response to increasing
country-level activity and increasing concern about how to
measure advances in meeting ICPD goals, UNFPA is also helping to
develop indicators of progress at the country level. Health
indicators and demographic parameters do not register changes in
a short time span, and certainly not in a two-year period. I am
confident, however, that the foundations now being laid will
produce results.
At this juncture -- Cairo plus two -- I am concerned about the
adequacy of the financial resources so essential for the
successful implementation of the Conference. If the goals of the
ICPD are to be achieved, it is critical that the resource levels
agreed to in the Programme of Action be honoured. In Cairo,
developing countries agreed to provide, on average, two thirds of
the resources needed from domestic sources; the international
community committed itself to providing one third of the
requisite funding. During the past two years, a number of
developing countries have increased their domestic allocations
for social-sector spending, including population. It is crucial
that international donors endorse and encourage this welcome
trend by upholding their share of the financial goals of the
ICPD.
The ICPD is often referred to as a benchmark conference. Indeed,
it was. It galvanized political will, forged new partnerships,
crafted a new approach to population and development and focused
the spotlight on women's rights and their pivotal role in
achieving sustainable development. Successful implementation of
the ICPD Programme of Action will require both political and
financial commitment. We must maintain the momentum of Cairo if
we are to achieve its mission so that present and future
generations enjoy a better quality of life.
***
BRAZIL INSTITUTIONALIZES ITS ICPD FOLLOW-UP
Brazil's many months of follow-up activity related to the
International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD)
culminated with the establishment, in August 1995, of the
National Commission of Population and Development -- the first
such commission in Latin America. The Commission was set up by
presidential decree as an outgrowth of three conferences held
immediately after the ICPD to discuss the implementation of the
ICPD Programme of Action. Dr. Elza Berquo is President of the
Commission, which includes one representative each from eight
ministries; representatives from the Presidency's General
Secretariat and Secretariat for Strategic Affairs; and eight
members of civil society, most of whom are professionals in the
population field.
The Commission aims at contributing to policy formulation and
"the implementation of integrated activities regarding population
and development, according to the recommendations of the World
Programme of Action." The Commission is responsible, inter alia,
for collecting, evaluating and disseminating data on population
and development; promoting analyses of the demographic impact of
governmental and private-sector initiatives and supporting
updated studies on population at national and subnational levels;
promoting initiatives to increase training and education in
population and development studies; mobilizing new resources for
activities in population and development; and establishing a
permanent dialogue with national and international institutions
having objectives and activities that contribute to issues of
population and development.
The Commission has undertaken the Portuguese translation of the
ICPD Programme of Action. It has also provided support to women's
non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to disseminate information
and create awareness about the Cairo agenda.
Both the Minister of Health and the Minister of Education
appeared before the Commission to report on the implementation of
the Programme of Action. The discussions of these reports
contributed to a number of protocols between these ministries and
the National Council of Women's Rights. Under these protocols,
signed on 8 March 1996, the Ministry of Health will carry out an
intensive programme for the prevention of cervical and breast
cancers and will promote full access to family planning services
under the public sector's Unified Health System. The Ministry of
Education will include women's issues in the programme of
long-distance teacher training and will develop curricula and
training materials revised under new gender perspectives. Two
other ministries -- Labour and Justice -- signed protocols with the
Council. The Ministry of Labour will expand job and training
opportunities for professional categories and jobs usually held
by women. The Ministry of Justice will encourage discussion on
the possibility of revising the criminal classification of rape
to permit greater law enforcement and more severe penalties.
Since the ICPD, both the National Council of Women's Rights and
State Councils of Women's Rights have become involved in policies
and programmes dealing with reproductive health. In addition, the
public sector has formed partnerships with NGOs, women's groups
and professional societies. For example, a Safe Motherhood
initiative has been launched by the Women's Health Sector of the
Ministry of Health, actively involving the Brazilian Society of
Obstetrics and Gynaecology, universities, women's organizations
and international organizations such as the Pan American Health
Organization/ World Health Organization, the United Nations
Population Fund, and the United Nations Children's Fund. --
George Walmsley
UNFPA Representative
Brazil
***
IRAN PROMOTES ICPD'S REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH MESSAGES
The Islamic Republic of Iran has been actively implementing the
recommendations of the International Conference on Population and
Development (ICPD), adjusting national programmes and projects
in accordance with the principles and objectives of the ICPD
Programme of Action. It has also increased its budget for such
activities.
Immediately following the ICPD, the UNFPA-assisted Government
programme further integrated reproductive health (RH) care
information and services into the delivery of primary health
care. In line with ICPD recommendations concerning the
empowerment of women and in order to promote community
participation in RH and family planning (FP) programmes, the
Government expanded the Women Health Volunteers (WHVs) Programme
at the national level. This Programme now has approximately
18,000 WHVs who provide RH/FP information and services to
vulnerable groups living in urban slums. With a view to further
improving RH/FP services in rural areas, the Government also
established 15 new Rural Midwives (RMWs) Training Centres in nine
provinces. Training curricula and materials for health personnel
are being revised to include more RH/FP issues to enable service
providers, including WHVs and RMWs, to offer clients improved
RH/FP information and services in their own communities.
Simultaneously, the concept of quality of care has been
introduced through the training of service providers. The
Ministry of Health and Medical Education organized the first
national RH/FP counselling workshop in early 1995 in Bushehr,
southern Iran. Family planning officers and experts received
training in counselling techniques and two-way communication to
help clients make informed choices concerning family planning. In
November 1995, the Ministry launched a nationwide counselling
campaign concerning mothers' health, during which 12,000
specially trained medical students assisted health centres by
providing clients with information and advice on RH/FP issues,
such as prenatal and postnatal care, breast-feeding and breast
and cervical cancers. In addition, 305 pre-marriage counselling
centres have been established to provide young couples with RH/FP
information.
The Government is planning to enhance adolescents' knowledge
concerning RH/FP issues through programmes specially designed for
girls in the last year of high school. A pilot project is being
launched in Isfahan Province to enhance the RH/FP knowledge of
girl students and assist them in becoming healthy mothers in the
future. The recently revitalized Family Planning Association of
Iran (FPAI) is undertaking a survey of adolescents' reproductive
health. Responding to the ICPD's call to increase women's role in
decision-making, the Government has made a concerted effort to
increase women's participation in implementing RH/FP activities.
Women have been named to senior management posts in the Ministry
of Health and Medical Education.
Non-governmental organizations (NGOs), particularly those for
women, have played an increasingly active role since the ICPD and
the Fourth World Conference on Women. A dozen women's NGOs have
distributed about 210,000 copies of posters and pamphlets on
ICPD-related themes. Additionally, NGOs such as the Centre for
Women's Studies and Research, Rural Women Cooperatives and the
Islamic Women's Institute have organized seminars and workshops
and conducted research on RH/FP issues and women's empowerment.
Radio and television as well as print media have played an
important role in publicizing and promoting ICPD messages and
follow-up activities. In 1995, the Ministry of Health and Medical
Education established a centre for information, education and
communication (IEC), where courses and workshops are held to
train policy makers, programme managers and service providers on
RH/FP policy and programmes. Also, in 1995, a special workshop
was organized for 25 Iranian journalists to increase their
knowledge about ICPD-related subjects and UNFPA. The UNFPA field
office translated the ICPD Programme of Action into Farsi, for
distribution to non-governmental groups and institutes as well as
the Government.
A variety of human immunodeficiency virus/acquired
immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) prevention messages are
being conveyed through the media. Films on AIDS have been
broadcast on national TV, and a three-minute film on HIV
transmission and prevention is being shown in movie theatres
around the country. A telephone hotline has been established, and
pamphlets and brochures have been produced for the public and for
specific groups, such as truck drivers, drug users and health
workers. Training courses on HIV/AIDS have been organized. As
part of the HIV/AIDS information programme, a women's NGO will
hold a one-day seminar on HIV/AIDS transmission and prevention
later in 1996.
UNFPA is working closely with the Government to promote
population education activities in primary and secondary schools,
supporting the development of population education materials for
more than 1,000 pilot schools. Within the Ministry of Education,
a population division has been established to oversee and
coordinate population education activities. The Literacy Movement
Organization, which is responsible for non-formal education, is
also incorporating population education messages into literacy
curricula.
From Shu-Yun Xu
UNFPA Representative
Islamic Republic of Iran
***
BHUTAN PREPARES TO MEET POPULATION CHALLENGES
Over the last decade, Bhutan's achievements in improving the
health of its people have been striking. The infant mortality
rate (IMR) declined from 103 to 71 per 1,000 live births between
1984 and 1994. Over the same period, the maternal mortality rate
(MMR) declined by half -- from 770 to 380 per 100,000 live
births. At the same time, however, the population grew rapidly,
at a rate of 3.1 per cent in 1994.
To meet this challenge, His Majesty, King Jigme Singye Wangchuck,
signed a Royal Message to the people of Bhutan in 1995
encouraging them to adopt family planning as a means of
safeguarding their future and that of the nation as a whole.
The Government's Annual Health Conference in March 1996 endorsed
the introduction of reproductive health and family planning
(RH/FP) services as a major activity of the health sector
programme. The Conference also endorsed the introduction of sex
education in schools. Intent on reducing the IMR and MMR still
further, the Government has decided to give high priority to
RH/FP as well as population and environmental issues in its
Eighth Five-Year Plan (1997-2002). In addition to its efforts
to strengthen RH, the Government has organized numerous post-ICPD
advocacy and awareness-raising activities, many in connection
with World Population Day and the 50th Anniversary of the United
Nations.
As a specific follow-up to the ICPD, the Government organized a
workshop on population and development in May 1995. This was the
first time that all sectoral ministries, United Nations and
bilateral organizations and agencies, along with non-governmental
organizations (NGOs), came together to discuss population issues.
The workshop recommended the formulation of a National Plan of
Action for Population and Development, the integration of
population issues into the Government's Eighth Five-Year Plan,
the development of reliable data to support population and
development planning, and concerted efforts to implement the
recommendations of the ICPD Programme of Action.
Following the workshop, the Government decided to include a
separate chapter on population in the Eighth Plan as well as a
chapter on issues related to gender in development. The
Government recognizes clearly that population and development
issues are inseparable for attaining sustainable human
development. It places high priority on conservation and on a
sustainable utilization of Bhutan's rich natural resources, as a
majority of the population depend upon these for their
livelihoods.
In September 1996, UNFPA will undertake a Programme Review and
Strategy Development (PRSD) exercise in Bhutan. The Government's
priorities, in line with the ICPD Programme of Action, will be
given full attention during this mission so that a comprehensive
population programme can be formulated for the next plan period.
Wasim Zaman
UNFPA Representative
Bhutan
***
GLOBAL POPULATION ASSISTANCE REPORT PUBLISHED
External assistance for population activities appears to have
increased in 1994, a likely result of the intensified focus on
population in preparatory activities for the International
Conference on Population and Development (ICPD). The newly
published Global Population Assistance Report 1994, with data
from 118 countries and organizations, includes the following
findings:
* Funds for international population assistance from developed
countries and private sources, including development bank loans,
totalled $US 1.6 billion in 1994 -- a 25 per cent increase over
the 1993 total;
* Population assistance from all donor countries represented 1.65
per cent of official development assistance (ODA) in 1994, the
highest percentage in the 10 years covered by this report;
* UNFPA was the most significant provider of population
assistance among multilateral organizations and agencies, with
almost $279 million flowing through the organization in 1994; and
* Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) were important donors of
population assistance, contributing approximately $117 million
for population assistance in 1994.
Financial constraints remain one of the chief obstacles to the
realization of the goals and objectives of the ICPD. It is
estimated that in developing countries and countries with
economies in transition, the implementation of programmes for
reproductive health, including family planning, maternal health
and the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases, as well as
programmes for population data collection and analysis will cost
$17 billion by the year 2000. Considerable efforts are needed to
mobilize the funds necessary to implement the ICPD Programme of
Action.
Copies of the Global Population Assistance Report 1994 are
available from UNFPA.
***
SENATOR LETICIA SHAHANI AND PATHFINDER INTERNATIONAL WIN UN
POPULATION AWARD
At a ceremony on 17 July 1996, Secretary-General Boutros
Boutros-Ghali presented the United Nations Population Award to
the Hon. Leticia Ramos Shahani, Senate President Pro-Tempore,
Republic of the Philippines, and Pathfinder International, an
international non-governmental organization (NGO) based in the
United States of America.
Senator Shahani was chosen for her more than 30 years of
leadership in the field of population. Sponsor of the "Shahani
Bill", intended to strengthen the country's new population policy
and the Commission on Population of the Philippines, Senator
Shahani also spearheaded the establishment of the Philippine
Legislators Committee on Population and Development in 1988.
In her acceptance speech at the award ceremony, Senator Shahani
emphasized that "the ICPD debate provided the means by which ...
consensus [was] reached on many issues previously considered
irreconcilable .... Such is the unique role of United Nations
Conferences." Pathfinder International, which has supported over
2,000 programmes in more than 30 countries, was chosen for its 38
years of sustained effort in developing and improving family
planning programmes and creating awareness of population issues.
Daniel E. Pellegrom, President, Pathfinder International, in his
acceptance speech, noted that the ICPD Programme of Action
"focused the world's attention on women, their equality, their
empowerment, their health and their reproductive rights."
Established in 1981 by the United Nations General Assembly, the
United Nations Population Award is presented annually to
individuals and/or institutions for the most outstanding
contribution to the awareness of population questions or to their
solutions. Past recipients of the award include President Hosni
Mubarak of Egypt (1994), Mr. Fred T. Sai of Ghana (1993), Ms.
Shidzue Kato of Japan (1988), Ms. Carmen A. Miro of Panama
(1984), and the late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi of India
(1983). Institutions that have received the United Nations award
include: the Inter-African Committee on Traditional Practices
Affecting the Health of Women and Children (1995), The Population
Council (1992), PROFAMILIA, Colombia (1988), and the
International Planned Parenthood Federation (1985).
***
Southern Africa - Oshakati, Namibia, was the site of a seven-week
course, "Audience Research, Message and Materials Development for
Population Information, Education and Communication (IEC),"
conducted by UNFPA's Regional Population IEC Training Programme
in February-March 1996. The course allowed the 22 participants
from Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, Swaziland, South Africa and
Zambia to share their perspectives on demographic factors,
gender, adolescent sexuality, family planning and reproductive
health.
AWID Award - Citing her pivotal role in the success of the
International Conference on Population and Development and her
long commitment to the empowerment of women, the Association for
Women in Development (AWID) honoured Dr. Nafis Sadik, Executive
Director of UNFPA, with the AWID leadership award at its annual
conference in Washington, D.C., 5-9 September. In her statement
of acceptance, Dr. Sadik noted that "the ICPD and Fourth World
Conference on Women will go down in history as major steps
forward for women, and for all humanity....They established, once
and for all, that women's rights are human rights and that
ensuring gender equality is a critical end in its own right; it
is essential to eradicating poverty, to protecting the
environment and to stabilizing world population growth in support
of sustainable development." In her statement, Dr. Sadik called
attention to the important role that women's non-governmental
organizations (NGOs) played in the ICPD and underscored UNFPA's
commitment to working extensively with NGOs.
***
HABITAT II
The UN Conference on Human Settlements (HABITAT II), which took
place in Istanbul from 3 to 14 June, called on countries to
strengthen their commitments to achieving sustainable human
settlements. Addressing the plenary session of the Conference,
colloquially known as the City Summit, Dr. Nafis Sadik, Executive
Director, UNFPA, emphasized the linkage between population and
human settlements issues. She underscored the critical challenges
posed by rapid urbanization: providing basic social services;
creating employment; and responding to the needs of young people,
who account for a large proportion of the urban population.
Pointing to rapid rates of urban growth, Dr. Sadik noted that, at
present, 11 of the world's 25 largest megacities are in the
developing world and that another 13 mega-cities which will
emerge over the next 20 years will all be in developing
countries. She urged that HABITAT II endorse the ICPD consensus,
which had been confirmed and strengthened at the World Summit for
Social Development (March 1995) and the Fourth World Conference
on Women (September 1995).
UNFPA participated in a number of the parallel events which were
part of the Conference. Together with WHO and UNDP, it sponsored
the dialogue "Creating Healthy Cities in the 21st Century", for
which it organized the Panel on Women's Reproductive Health.
UNFPA supported a consortium of major youth NGOs at the
International Youth Consultation on HABITAT II. As part of its
activities at the NGO Forum, UNFPA, together with several UN
organizations and NGOs, participated in a panel addressing
interactions between the UN and the NGO community in implementing
the recommendations of recent UN conferences.
* *** *