HAGUE FORUM HAS PROVED ICPD PROGRAMME OF ACTION WORKS, DR. NAFIS SADIK TELLS CLOSING SESSION
Press Release
POP/706
HAGUE FORUM HAS PROVED ICPD PROGRAMME OF ACTION WORKS, DR. NAFIS SADIK TELLS CLOSING SESSION
19990216 Delegates Adopt Report Proposing Actions to Carry Forward Cairo AgendaTHE HAGUE, 12 February (UNFPA) -- "We have shown each other and the world that the ICPD Programme of Action is far more than a piece of paper. We have proved that it works", Dr. Nafis Sadik, Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) told delegates to The Hague Forum today. "In all of our countries, some steps have been taken to make it a reality; and in many countries implementation is moving ahead quite rapidly."
The forum, a review of progress in implementing the Programme of Action of the 1994 Cairo International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), ended today after adopting a report of findings and proposing actions to carry forward the Cairo agenda.
Delegates from 177 States approved the report in the final plenary session held this afternoon in the Netherlands Conference Centre. The report's findings and proposals cover the forum's five themes: creating an enabling environment for population programmes; gender equality and the empowerment of women; reproductive rights and health, including family planning and sexual health; the strengthening of partnerships; and financing.
Organized by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), The Hague Forum was part of ICPD+5, a series of review activities leading up to a high-level special session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York from 30 June to 2 July. The meeting examined countries' achievements since the Cairo agreement, identifying successes, constraints to be overcome and priorities.
The forum report, prepared by the secretariat and adopted in plenary, was not a negotiated text. It will be a background document for the Commission on Population and Development when it meets from 24 to 31 March as the preparatory committee for the General Assembly special session.
In a press conference, Dr. Sadik highlighted some of the major findings:
-- Acceptance of the concept of reproductive and sexual health is growing;
-- Adolescent reproductive health issues are now on the public agenda; at the same time, many young people still lack access to appropriate information and services, and political commitment to adolescents' right to reproductive health is still weak in some countries;
-- In a growing number of countries, women and adolescents now have the right to confidentiality and privacy in the delivery of services;
-- Many countries have enacted gender action plans aimed at promoting and protecting women's rights;
-- Little progress has been made in reducing high levels of maternal mortality in a number of countries; governments should promote safe motherhood as a human rights issue and give it greater priority;
-- The HIV/AIDS situation is much worse than in 1994; benchmarks are needed for progress in preventing the spread of the disease;
-- Unsafe abortion should be addressed as a public health issue, and reduced through the provision of family planning information and services, including emergency contraception;
-- Refugees and others in emergency situations should be provided with reproductive health care;
-- Countries should have "zero-tolerance" for all forms of violence, including rape, incest, sexual violence, sex trafficking, against women and children;
-- Countries should try to meet the agreed target of allocating 0.7 per cent of their gross domestic product (GDP) as official development assistance (ODA); at least 4 per cent of ODA should be devoted to population-related activities.
Closing Session
During the closing of the forum, Eveline Herfkens, the Netherlands' Minister for Development Cooperation, asked donor countries to put their money where their mouths are. Developing countries, she said, should choose their priorities well and use resources efficiently, as they have that choice.
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The representative of Germany said, on behalf of the European Union and some associated Central and Eastern European States, that the Union will use the 38-page forum report to prepare for the 24-31 March preparatory committee meeting. She expressed hope that the findings and proposals will help make the Secretary-General's report to the special session as concrete as possible. His report, too, should be as short and action-oriented as possible, in order to help to move the Cairo process ahead in the next five years.
Bangladesh's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Anwarul Karim Chowdhury, presented the major sections of the report on findings and proposed actions. He pointed out that the report was produced at six sessions of the Main Committee, which he chaired. Constraints, progress and proposed actions are included in various sections of the report.
After the adoption of the report, some delegations commented on some of its sections; some said it should be made clear that the outcome is not binding on countries.
In her closing statement, Dr. Nafis Sadik told the delegates that during the forum, "We have shown that our work is cost-effective. We deliver a lot for little. In a world hard-pressed for development resources, we have shown that population programmes are among the best investment any country, donor or developing, can make."
"Above all", Dr. Sadik continued, "we have shown that population programmes change lives for the better, and do it directly, swiftly and decisively. Population and development programmes save women's lives. They help to protect the family. They offer choices far beyond the basic choice in the size and spacing of the family. They liberate the mind and energize the spirit. As such, they are profoundly based on ethical and moral principles."
Despite the progress reported at the forum, Dr. Sadik said, several challenges remain. Political commitment to adolescents' reproductive health is still weak in some nations and their problems should be considered pragmatically. The needs of women and adolescent girls in emergency situations need closer attention. Quality standards of care must be further developed and applied.
The Executive Director welcomed participants' calls for countries to reach the 0.7 per cent of GDP allocation to ODA and to commit 4 per cent of ODA to population activities, and praised the Netherlands and other donor countries for their support in this area.
"What we did in Cairo, what we have done here, and what we will do for the rest of 1999 and the years following, will secure the future not only for those close to us or in our own countries, but for all people, everywhere," Dr. Sadik said. "Together, we are fighting a battle of the everyday; and
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every day calls for our renewed commitment and renewed partnership. This is a battle we can win; let us win it together. Let us start now."
Closing the meeting, Nicolas Biegman, Netherlands' Ambassador to North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and President of the forum, said the Cairo consensus has taken root and the approach to population and reproductive health, based on the rights of the individual, are being applied worldwide. The international community now knows what it wants to do, accounting for the relative lack of tension at the forum. A lack of resources seems to be the major constraint to population and reproductive health programmes even though the right approach has been arrived at, he said.
He concluded, "Go out into the world and spread the word."
Summary of Findings and Proposed Actions
Following is a summary of some of the findings and proposed actions included in the forum report:
Both donor and developing countries should fulfil their funding commitments. In financing, HIV/AIDS prevention should be given priority, and the ICPD Programme of Action target of $1.3 billion for this effort should be met quickly. Donor and developing countries should increase substantially their funding for UNFPA, to put it in a better position to help countries, particularly those for which it is the only source of population assistance.
The private sector, too, including foundations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and transnational corporations should provide more money for population work.
The international community and governments need to create enabling conditions that will enable developing countries to achieve sustained economic growth and to establish the means for managing resource flows. Countries should be helped to eradicate poverty by ensuring an open, equitable international trading system, by encouraging direct investments, by cutting debts, and by ensuring that structural adjustment programmes respond to social and environmental concerns. Gender equality and the empowerment of women must be included in development initiatives, and health sector reforms must accord priority to gender-sensitive reproductive health services.
Countries emerging from war, civil strife, climatic disasters and economic crises should receive special financial and technical help, the report states, to strengthen their ability to handle population and development concerns.
The human rights of migrants, particularly women, must be ensured; there should be dialogue between sending, transient and receiving countries to
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protect migrants' rights and guarantee their access to basic services. States should join the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families.
In the area of gender equality and empowerment of women, a gender perspective should be incorporated in all policies, programmes and activities, including service delivery. Action should be taken to eliminate negative traditional, religious and cultural attitudes and practices that subjugate women and reinforce gender inequality. The impact on women of globalization of the economy and of the privatization of social and health sectors must be monitored, and specific mitigating measures adopted, especially for the poor.
Governments and the private sector should act to remove all gender gaps and inequalities relating to women's participation in the labour market. Policies or laws guaranteeing equal pay for work of equal value must be instituted and enforced.
Schoolchildren should be taught gender awareness as a crucial step in eliminating discrimination against women. Enrolment in school for girls must be enforced to ensure empowerment of women in future generations. The participation of women in policy and decision-making at all levels, and in conflict prevention and resolution, should be accelerated. Affirmative action should be used when necessary. Strategies to promote gender equality in families must be developed too.
"Zero-tolerance for all forms of violence, including rape, incest, sexual violence, sex trafficking, against women and children should be promoted." Government should implement the Stockholm Inter-governmental Agreement against trafficking, protect girls from harmful traditional practices and promote their access to health, education and life opportunities. Curricula should be reformed to remove gender stereotypes from all educational and training materials.
To promote reproductive health and rights, legislation and policies should be enacted and enforced to ensure reproductive rights, gender equity and equality, including voluntary choice in marriage, family forms and the determination of the number, spacing and timing of children. Health sector reforms must maintain high priority for sexual and reproductive health and ensure equity of access to information and services.
Safe motherhood should be promoted as a human rights issue. Resources must be allocated to meet the growing demand for access to information, counselling, services and the full range of safe and effective contraceptive methods, including the female condom and emergency contraception. Governments should support community-based services and social and subsidized marketing, which are vital extensions of primary health care services; and explore new partnerships with the private sector.
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Unsafe abortion should be addressed as a public health issue and reduced by lowering the number of unwanted pregnancies through the provision of family planning information and services, including emergency contraception.
Governments, at the highest political levels, should commit themselves to HIV/AIDS prevention, improve care for HIV-infected persons and work to mitigate the impact of the AIDS epidemic. They should also initiate urgent action against the HIV/AIDS epidemic and invest in prevention and treatment. Greater efforts should be made to combat sexual violence, which threatens girls' and women's human rights and puts them at risk from sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) including HIV/AIDS.
Sexual and reproductive health programmes for adolescents should encompass not only sex education and provision of contraceptives, but also basic health care, STD prevention and treatment and effective referral services. Adolescents should also receive counselling that addresses sexuality, builds self-esteem, promotes gender equality and ensures confidentiality.
Innovative strategies should be developed to provide adolescent girls and boys with reproductive health information through both formal and informal education -- including peer counselling -- to promote gender equality, responsible sexual behaviour and prevent unwanted pregnancy. National plans for investing in young people should be developed and implemented with the full involvement of adolescents. Such plans should include education, professional and vocational training, income-generating opportunities, and sexual and reproductive health information and services. Special attention should be given to gender equality and equity and to youth disadvantaged by poverty, race, ethnicity, residence or disability.
Women and others in refugee and emergency situations must get reproductive health care and greater protection from sexual and gender-based violence.
For further information, contact Corrie Shanahan, e-mail: shanahan@unfpa.org, tel. (212) 297-5023; or Abubakar Dungus, e-mail: dungus@unfpa.org, tel. (212) 297-5031. Fax: (212) 557-6416.
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