MOBILIZATION OF RESOURCES IN TACKLING POPULATION AND DEVELOPMENT ISSUES STRESSED BY SPEAKERS IN ECONOMIC AND FINANCIAL COMMITTEE

5 November 1996

Press Release
GA/EF/2744

MOBILIZATION OF RESOURCES IN TACKLING POPULATION AND DEVELOPMENT ISSUES STRESSED BY SPEAKERS IN ECONOMIC AND FINANCIAL COMMITTEE

19961105 Draft on Application of Principles of Rio Declaration Introduced

As the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) began consideration of population and development issues this afternoon, the Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Dr. Nafis Sadik, stressed the importance of mobilizing private sector resources to implement the Programme of Action adopted by the International Conference on Population and Development (Cairo, 1994), adding that the Fund had been given a mandate by the Conference to tap that sector.

In introductory remarks, Dr. Sadik recalled that at the Cairo Conference it had been agreed that donor assistance for population matters needed to reach $5.7 billion by the year 2000. She added that the Cairo Programme of Action affirmed the interrelationship between population, sustained economic growth and sustainable development, and was anchored in a human rights approach that recognized the critical importance of meeting the needs of women and men and of improving the quality of their lives.

Speaking on behalf of the "Group of 77" developing countries and China, the representative of Costa Rica said the Programme of Action had estimated that approximately two thirds of the projected costs in implementing population and development programmes in developing countries would have to come from domestic resources. The other one third, or approximately $5.7 billion by the year 2000, would come from the international donor community. However, despite all the efforts, the resources now available were not enough. She called for innovative ways for mobilizing resources to implement the Cairo outcome.

Like in other least developed countries, everything was a priority in Burkina Faso, that country's representative stated. Population and development issues had to fight with other needs for scarce resources. Therefore, the lack of resources remained at the heart of the matter. He reaffirmed his country's support for the 20/20 initiative, which is based on the idea of allocating 20 per cent of official development assistance (ODA) and 20 per cent of national budgets to priority basic social programmes.

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The representative of Norway said her country had taken a special interest in ensuring that the commitment on the 20/20 initiative agreed to at the Copenhagen World Summit for Social Development was translated into action. It believed the concept had a special appeal, in particular because the commitments were mutual, for both donors and recipients. The 20/20 concept did not cover the donor community alone, nor was it another aid "conditionality". It should be a tool for developing countries and their partners to jointly give higher priority to basic social services, she added.

Statements were also made by the representatives of Ireland (on behalf of the European Union and associated States), China, Philippines, Bangladesh, Russian Federation, Marshall Islands, Kenya, United States, Egypt, Malta, Jamaica, Mexico, Benin, Brazil and Ethiopia.

Also this afternoon, the Committee heard the introduction of a draft resolution on the application in international cooperation on matters related to the environment of the principles of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, adopted by the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development. Under its provisions, the General Assembly would call upon the international community to apply the principle of common but differentiated responsibility in international cooperation to protect the environment.

The Committee will meet again at 10 a.m. tomorrow, 6 November, to continue its deliberations.

Committee Work Programme

The Second Committee (Economic and Financial) met this afternoon to take up population and development questions, as well as hear the introduction of a draft resolution related to environment and sustainable development issues.

The Committee will have before it a report of the Secretary-General (document A/51/350) which examines the implementation of the Programme of Action of the 1994 Cairo International Conference on Population and Development. The report also examines coordination and collaboration by the United Nations system in implementing the Programme. It provides an overview of progress made at the national level and highlights some important recent developments in South-South cooperation.

The report reviews resource flows for population assistance and the work of the Commission on Population and Development. Finally, the report reviews actions taken by the governing body of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) to facilitate the implementation of both the Programme of Action and General Assembly resolution 50/123. The resolution was adopted in 1994 and also deals with the Programme's implementation.

The report observes that financial constraints remain one of the chief obstacles to the realization of the goals and objectives of the Cairo Conference. It estimates that the implementation of programmes in the area of reproductive health, including those related to family planning, maternal health and the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases, as well as related programmes for collection and analysis of population data, will cost $17 billion by the year 2000. The Programme of Action estimated that approximately two thirds of the projected costs in developing countries would have to come from domestic resources and one third, or $5.7 billion in the year 2000, from the international donor community.

In its efforts to promote South-South collaboration in the implementation of the Programme of Action, the UNFPA is supporting Partners in Population and Development, an independent intergovernmental organization launched in Cairo on the occasion of the Conference and based in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The Fund is also supporting four centres for South-South cooperation in reproductive health in Indonesia, Mexico, Thailand and Tunisia.

The Commission on Population and Development, at its twenty-ninth session last March, approved a draft resolution, subsequently adopted by the Economic and Social Council, in which the Council seeks to enhance the role of the Commission in monitoring the Cairo Programme of Action. The governing body of the UNFPA has endorsed a proposal for a new approach for resource allocation based on the goals and objectives of the Cairo Programme of Action which pays special attention to low-income countries, least developed countries and Africa.

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The draft resolution on the application of the principles of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development in international cooperation on environment (document A/C.2/51/L.11) would have the General Assembly strongly call upon the international community to provide support for the effective participation of all concerned countries in the implementation of their commitments in the field of environment and sustainable development through technical and financial assistance and other appropriate mechanisms, including bilateral and regional channels and multilateral institutions and funds.

It would call upon the international community to apply, where necessary, the principle of common but differentiated responsibility in ongoing international cooperation on the protection of environment and in efforts to implement existing instruments of international environment law and in the elaboration of new instruments. In addition, the international community would be called upon to take fully into account specific circumstances and requirements, particularly those of developing countries and countries with economies in transition.

The Assembly would invite the Secretary-General, in the course of preparations for its special session for an overall review and appraisal of the implementation of Agenda 21 of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), to submit information on the application of the principles contained in the Rio Declaration.

In addition, the Assembly at its 1997 special session would be invited to consider the issue of the application of the principles in the Rio Declaration in different instruments adopted so far, with particular focus on the role played by the United Nations and its bodies. It would also be asked to make recommendations on further development of international law in the field of sustainable development.

The draft is sponsored by Belarus, Russian Federation and Ukraine.

Introduction of Draft Resolution

ALEXANDER PANKIN (Russian Federation) introduced a draft resolution on application of the principles of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development in international cooperation on the environment. He announced that in addition to Belarus and Ukraine, Georgia, Latvia and Tajikistan had joined in sponsoring it.

Population and Development

Dr. NAFIS SADIK, Executive Director of UNFPA, in an introductory statement, said international assistance for population totalled $1.6 billion in 1994, compared to $1.3 billion the previous year. Donor assistance was $1.2 billion in 1994, compared to $966 million in 1993. At the Cairo

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International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) it had been agreed that donor assistance for population needed to reach $5.7 billion by the year 2000. The ICPD Programme of Action affirmed the interrelationship between population, sustained economic growth and sustainable development. It was anchored in a human rights approach that recognized the critical importance of meeting the needs of women and men and of improving the quality of their lives. The Programme of Action emphasized the need to achieve gender equality and the empowerment of women, and underscored that guaranteeing reproductive rights was a key element in the achievement of gender parity.

She said the momentum for United Nations conference follow-up generated by the ICPD Inter-Agency Task Force was being carried forward by the Task Force on Basic Services for All of the Administrative Committee on Coordination (ACC), which the UNFPA chaired. It comprised 19 United Nations organizations and sought to provide guidance to the United Nations resident coordinator system in helping governments realize the commitments they agreed to at recent United Nations conferences. The work outputs to be produced by that Task Force included best practices/lessons learned regarding donor collaboration in the social sector, a compendium of international treaties and conventions pertaining to the social sector, indicators to monitor progress in the provision of basic social services for all and an advocacy card for basic social services.

She said countries were putting in place strategies and programmes designed to attain the ICPD goals and to meet the broad range of social sector needs. Almost all were reorienting their family planning programmes. Women's empowerment and participation in decision-making processes was a crucial aspect of the reproductive health approach and, increasingly, gender concerns were being taken into account. A number of initiatives were under way at the national and international levels and at the intergovernmental and inter- agency levels, to implement the ICPD Programme of Action.

LILIANA HERNANDEZ (Costa Rica), speaking on behalf of the "Group of 77" developing countries and China, said the Cairo Programme of Action recognized the link between population and development. Population programmes were not simply about numbers and demographic targets, but rather about human beings who were at the centre of population and development activities. Consequently, the programme had underscored the need to reconcile aspirations and requirements of individual men and women with long-term development objectives.

The Group of 77 reaffirmed the importance that it attached to the implementation of the Programme of Action of the Conference, she said. The Group had always emphasized the need for expansion of the Commission on Population and Development. She noted the increase in Commission membership from 27 to 47 as a result of decision 1995/320 of the Economic and Social Council which had been endorsed by General Assembly resolution 50/124.

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Despite the fact that the Group would have preferred an increase in membership to 53, the increase was a major step to enable the Commission to assist the Council in monitoring and assessing the implementation of the Programme of Action.

The Programme of Action had estimated that approximately two thirds of the projected costs in implementing population and development programmes in developing countries would have to come from domestic resources, she said. The other one third, or approximately $5.7 billion in the year 2000, would come from the international donor community. However, despite all the efforts, the resources now available were not enough.

There must be innovative ways for resources mobilization, she said. By its decision 96/15, the UNFPA Executive Board had reaffirmed that, in order to achieve the goals of the ICPD, there was a need for adequate mobilization of resources at the national and international levels, as well as of new and additional resources to developing countries from all sources, including multilateral, bilateral and private sources. The concept of South-South cooperation for the successful implementation of the ICPD was also relevant and valid.

HELEN BROWNE (Ireland), speaking on behalf of the European Union and of Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia, reiterated the importance the Union attached to the full implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action. More concerted action was needed at the national level to enable women and men to gain access to the reproductive health care and services they needed. The advancement and empowerment of women and their involvement in decision-making processes was essential to the success of those programmes.

She called for a reappraisal of the shape, content and structure of the work programme for future meetings of the Commission on Population and Development. Consideration should also be given to how best meet the demands which had arisen in connection with the implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action while conserving the essential elements of the Commission's existing long-term work programme. Its role should be examined as part of the overall review of the subsidiary bodies of the Economic and Social Council. The European Union welcomed the progress made by the United Nations system in seeking to ensure a coordinated and integrated follow-up to the Cairo Conference. With the structures now in place, the focus should be on working towards reaching the goals set and on fulfilling unmet needs for reproductive health services. The European Union also welcomed the important steps taken by the UNFPA to reorient its activities to clarify its role in the ICPD follow-up.

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WANG QUN (China) said the implementation of the Cairo Programme of Action should be based on the specific conditions of each country, which should decide independently on its own population policies and objectives, as well as programmes, priorities and measures to achieve those objectives. Moreover, the implementation of the Programme of Action required intensified and effective international cooperation and adequate financial resources. While it was the responsibility of national governments to implement the programme, a favourable external environment and adequate financial resources were indispensable.

For that reason, he continued, it was important to intensify international development cooperation. Lack of funds stood out as the most prominent sticking point in the implementation process. In that regard, the developed countries should honour their commitments to provide new and additional resources. In addition, any assistance provided by the United Nations development agencies should be free of conditions. Also, it was important that an essential effective follow-up mechanism be straightened out and coordination be enhanced among relevant agencies. The role of the Commission on Population and Development as the intergovernmental organ carrying out the follow-up actions of the ICPD should be strengthened. Also, the question of international migration merited the broad attention of the international community in the implementation of the Programme of Action.

LETICIA R. SHAHANI (Philippines) said she was convinced that the reproductive health approach as introduced at the ICPD should be able to open doors for all countries in improving the status of women, not only in the area of health and education, but in the overall enhancement of their quality of life. The whole United Nations system must be mobilized to contribute to the implementation of the Cairo Programme of Action, and the Commission on Population and Development had the primary responsibility for reviewing that implementation. National initiatives, support activities of the various entities of the United Nations system, and financial and other assistance from the donor community, as well as the role of stakeholders like non-governmental organizations in the area of population and development, must be brought to bear in the deliberations of the Commission.

It was well known that large-scale, uncontrolled population movement was a serious concern of many countries, developed and developing, she said. The number of international migrants had increased by more than 50 per cent during the past 50 years and for some countries one fourth of their population increase had been due to international migration. The international community should seek to achieve orderly international migration, and through it, create positive impacts on countries of origin and destination.

ANWARUL KARIM CHOWDHURY (Bangladesh) stressed the need for genuine global partnership, and noted that the modest success of his country's population policies was testimony of international cooperation. He hoped for

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an information exchange on the experiences of other countries. Although governments had the primary responsibility for drawing up and implementing population policies, the global dimension of population and development called for collective support and an enabling international environment for their implementation.

That was particularly so for countries with serious resource constraint, he said. Governments should act upon the commitment to cover a third of the estimated cost of implementing the Programme of Action from external sources, with special priority being given to the least developed countries. The Bretton Woods institutions should pay more attention to the social dimensions, while formulating structural adjustment measures, he added.

PETER SCHTZER, a representative of the International Organization for Migration, said the organization's policies and activities were based on the principle that humane and orderly migration benefited migrants and society. It continued to devote considerable effort to furthering the ICPD Programme of Action. The organization's mission statement of operational assistance, encouragement of social and economic development migration and upholding the human dignity and well-being of migrants also permeated the Programme of Action. The organization had consistently stressed the relevance of the ICPD Programme of Action for cooperative international action to meet current and future migration challenges.

The International Organization for Migration was working with other international intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, as well as with States in helping forcibly displaced populations in the Great Lakes region of Africa, Chechnya and the former Yugoslavia, he said. It was involved in arranging for the voluntary return in safety and dignity of individual migrants who might not remain at their present location. Resettlement of migrants, including family reunion, was a third important component of the organization's traditional humanitarian migration activities, he stated. Its programmes had recently focused on the return of developing country nationals who had acquired skills abroad and who could, if they were to return, contribute to national development efforts.

ALEXANDER PANKIN (Russian Federation) said data in the Secretary- General's report did not provide enough information on progress achieved in the implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action. He raised questions on the lack of indicators in the report. It would be useful to know how coordination and interaction of the relevant agencies was progressing on population activities in the field. The Secretary-General's report had not sufficiently dealt with that issue.

Work being done in economies in transition should have been sufficiently reflected, he said. The Russian Federation supported the new approaches in resource allocation adopted by the UNFPA. He felt economies in transition

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should benefit from those resources on an individual basis. A range of problems experienced by those countries was broader than the mere demographics.

ESPEN RONNEBERG (Marshall Islands) said the International Conference on Population and Development had highlighted population issues of international and regional importance. Building on arrangements already in existence, the Marshall Islands had begun a process of regional cooperation and coordination. For Pacific island countries, a regional approach to implementing the Conference's Programme of Action was the most efficient, because although the region was not homogenous, there were shared characteristics.

He said many countries, including his own, had instituted a number of national procedures in order to implement the Programme of Action. For the Marshall Islands, the National Population Council had been endorsed as the implementation body at the national level. Although some funding assistance had been provided, the intensity of international assistance had declined. It now appeared that expectations of help from the international community had been too high. Most of the significant steps towards implementation had come from the local community, supported by the Government. He hoped the international community would recognize his country's efforts to facilitate initiatives, and give assistance to those projects.

NJUGUNA M. MAHUGO (Kenya) said his country had pursued an integrated and active population policy. Fertility had been reduced over the last decade, but the population was still growing at an annual rate of 3 per cent. Family planning services were a priority, including interventions in basic education and reproductive health, in order to lower the population growth rate. While Kenya had increased its financial commitment to the population sector, international cooperation remained essential for the successful implementation of the ICPD recommendations. Both multilateral and bilateral support was required.

He noted the collaborative efforts of the United Nations system through the Inter-Agency Task Force on the implementation of the programme at the country level. The "people-centred development" approach in these programmes was commendable. Enhancing institutional mechanisms at the regional and international levels was central to follow-up of the Conference; he urged those who had made financial commitments to honour them.

VICTOR MARRERO (United States) said one of the points in the Secretary- General's report which deserved special attention was its mention of an integrated approach to population and development. Such an approach recognized that population programmes and reproductive health care were an integral part of social, economic and cultural development that improved the quality of life of all people. The Secretariat's report on the Programme of Action showed that different parts of the United Nations system could work

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together to achieve common goals. The cooperation and collaboration achieved in the Inter-Agency Task Force process boded well for a more effective United Nations.

It also confirmed that South-South partnership worked, he continued. It could be an effective means for promoting technical assistance among developing countries and strengthening the capacity of countries to respond to development needs of individual men and women. The report illustrated the power of integrating women into the development programmes. It reaffirmed that the United Nations had an important and unique role to play in the population field. In addition, it confirmed the value of the work of the Commission on Population and Development and of the Population Division of the Department for Economic and Social Information and Policy Analysis. Moreover, it recognized the urgency of the need to develop verifiable and reliable indicators to monitor work in that area.

He wondered if the work by various United Nations agencies in the area of national reproductive health and family planning programmes was enough. Also: Did the efforts of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) provide the right mix of interventions? Was there more that UNICEF and WHO could do to support the UNFPA's work? Could joint programming of reproductive and child health lead to better, more cost-effective interventions?

ABDEL M. ABDELLATIF (Egypt) said the international community was committed to the policies and measures stated in the Programme of Action of the ICPD. Therefore, the flow of financial resources for implementing its goals was important. The Secretary-General's report had pointed out that flow of resources was a major hindrance in implementation of the Conference goals. He stressed that the commitments of the Programme of Action should not be ignored.

Moreover, the follow-up of the Programme of Action should be in an integrated manner, he said. On the issue of international migration, he said it had a direct relationship with development and population. While international migration was not a new phenomenon, tackling it was important for both the sender and recipient countries as it had a political dimension. He thanked the UNFPA and the Population Division for studies and work done to implement the Programme of Action since the Cairo Conference. However, the provision of financial resources remained paramount.

JOSEPH CASSAR (Malta) said the merit of the Programme of Action from the population and development conference was its comprehensive approach to development. In terms of implementation, broad parameters and frameworks should not be transformed into rigid prescriptions to be universally and indiscriminately imposed. Population-related goals were integral to human development, the primary purpose of which was to improve the quality of life

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for all people. Lack of development and absolute poverty stimulated demographic imbalances and affronted shared notions of human rights and dignity. International cooperation and assistance were fundamental for sustainable development.

He said investment in youth -- through education, training and generating employment -- was essential for the future. The elderly should be ensured physical and social security, as well as continued participation as active members of society. The Malta-based United Nations International Institute on Ageing manifested the international community's concern on the issue. He said his country was committed to equal rights for men and women. Women's empowerment in all fields was an integral component of sustainable development.

Lack of development generated instability, he said, which in turn frequently led to violence and armed conflict. In a vicious cycle, this then inhibited future investment, reconstruction and rehabilitation. Civil and ethnic conflicts inhibited sustainable development as much as they did the process of democratization and the promotion of human rights. While population growth was significant and important, population control on its own was not the panacea to resolve all ills. Global development could be achieved through commitment to social justice and international solidarity.

ELISABETH JACOBSEN (Norway) said her country had taken a special interest in ensuring that the commitment on the 20/20 initiative from the Copenhagen World Social Summit was translated into action. It believed the concept had a special appeal, in particular because the commitments were mutual, for both donors and recipients. The 20/20 concept did not cover the donor community alone, nor was it another aid "conditionality". It should be a tool for developing countries and their partners to jointly give higher priority to basic social services. She expressed appreciation for the measures taken by UNICEF, the UNDP and the UNFPA on the follow-up of the 20/20 initiative. She called for a clear organizational structure and well-defined lines of communication in the follow-up to the global conferences. The ACC task forces appeared to be a step in the right direction.

She said the chapter in the Secretary-General's report on collaboration and coordination within the United Nations system provided useful background information, but it lacked analysis and focus on problems needing solutions. That limited its usefulness.

DAVID PRENDERGAST (Jamaica), speaking on behalf of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), said Caribbean Governments had been actively implementing strategies to achieve the goals of the ICPD and advancing population and development issues. The Caribbean plan of action illustrated the importance that Caribbean Governments attached to population and development strategies. They had taken several positive measures, and had sought to harness and manage natural resources to implement strategies and programmes to ensure a good quality of life for their peoples.

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In recognition of the importance of regional collaboration, the fifth regional meeting of ministers and high-level authorities of the housing and urban development sector in Latin America and the Caribbean would be held in Kingston, Jamaica from 12 to 15 November, he continued. That meeting would offer governments of the region the opportunity to exchange experiences and views on topics related to housing and urban development. It would also enable local authorities, the private sector and non-governmental organizations to present proposals.

PAUL-ROBERT TIENDREBEOGO (Burkina Faso) said he supported the statement by the representative of Costa Rica on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. He stressed that the process of preparing indicators for follow-up to the Cairo Conference should be completed as soon as possible. Moreover, those indicators should be disseminated as widely as possible, particularly outside the United Nations.

In the field, the United Nations should intensify cooperation with all the actors, including non-governmental organizations, he said. The initiatives of the UNFPA could serve as models. Like in other least developed countries, everything was a priority in Burkina Faso. Population and development issues had to fight with other needs for scarce resources. Therefore, the lack of resources remained at the heart of the matter. He reaffirmed his country's support for the 20/20 initiative, which is based on the idea of allocating 20 per cent of official development assistance (ODA) and 20 per cent of national budgets to priority basic social programmes.

GERALDO LOZANO (Mexico) said his country had built the commitments of the Cairo Conference into its national policies to educate people about family planning. A national population programme adopted by the Government had raised living standards as its objective. There had been a rise in the average life expectancy. South-South cooperation was being promoted through the country's centre on reproductive health. A conference with the theme "partners for South-South cooperation" had recently been held in his country, which had also played host to a conference on migration. A long-term approach had to be adopted to the phenomenon of migration with the problem being studied at regional and global levels. The conference had provided an opportunity to adopt decisions on the protection of migrants' rights.

ROGATIEN BIAOU (Benin) said some progress had been made on population and development issues, two years after the Cairo Conference. Benin was among the first countries to adopt concrete measures within the framework of the ICPD Programme of Action. On 2 May, his Government had adopted a declaration on population. Long before the Cairo Conference, Benin had adopted a three- year plan on population policies (1977-1979) which highlighted at that time, the links between food security and population demographics.

He said the process of democratization and reduction of social tensions in the 1990s had improved the knowledge of the demographic behaviour of populations and created favourable conditions to define population policy and

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programmes. The ICPD Programme of Action had helped his country's population policies. A balance had been struck between sustainable development and respect for fundamental rights. He also highlighted the collaboration between his Government and the UNFPA, referring in particular to the recent $10 million assistance for population programmes -- twice the amount of an earlier assistance programme -- and the appointment of a Benin national to head the Fund's operation in the country.

SERGIO FLORENCIO (Brazil) said the Programme of Action of the ICPD had called for an immediate response from individuals, governments, international and financial organizations, and the international community as a whole. Population issues could not be undertaken without corresponding attention to social and economic conditions. Development considerations should be placed at the centre of decisions relating to population issues.

In terms of his country's initiatives, he said the Brazilian National Commission on Population and Development had been operating for one year. It was devoted to research, analysis, and programme initiatives in the population sector. Brazil had experienced a demographic transition. About 70 per cent of Brazilian couples currently used some form of contraceptive method. Women and adolescents had become a priority in the field of public health and the process of ageing was a national concern. A conference in Brasilia last July had recommended the formation of an international centre on ageing to stimulate research and encourage international cooperation on the issue.

He said the increasing allocation of financial resources for population purposes signalled the intention of the donor community to live up to its commitments. However, that increase should come from new resources and not merely the reallocation of already existing funds. The UNFPA should retain overall responsibility for international cooperation in population. He supported priority for low-income and least developed countries, particularly in Africa. At the same time, however, efforts should be made to complement the resources available for population projects in the Latin America and Caribbean region, which lagged far behind in the allocation of financial resources for population purposes.

BERHANU KEBEDE (Ethiopia) welcomed the integrated approach to population development that had emerged from the Cairo Conference. People-centred development and the empowerment of women had been adopted as guiding principles of his country's national population policy. The new Constitution had recognized the equality of women and men. Through the national population council, the reproductive health needs of women and adolescents were being addressed, and population and family planning was being incorporated into educational curriculums. Surveys had been conducted with the assistance of the UNFPA in order to ensure reliable socio-economic and demographic data. The ICPD Programme of Action had been widely disseminated to government, non- governmental and other concerned bodies and institutions through numerous means including workshops and seminars.

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He said that in the three years since Ethiopia's national population policy had been adopted, there had been encouraging results. The Government was firmly committed to supporting population programmes financially and materially. The UNFPA was the major donor agency for population activities, and additional resources needed to be mobilized at national and international levels and from multilateral, bilateral and private sources. Least developed and low-income countries, particularly in Africa, were priorities for the implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action. He hoped the international community would allocate resources accordingly.

Responding to questions raised by delegations, the UNFPA Executive Director, Dr. Sadik, said resource mobilization should be seen at two levels, domestic and international. At the domestic level, all possible ways of mobilizing resources were being tapped. At the international level, while there had been a good response in 1995, 1996 had been less rosy. She stressed the importance of finding ways to tap the private sector, adding that the Fund had been given the mandate to tap that sector by the Cairo Conference.

The ACC Task Force on Basic Social Services would finish its work by next March, she said, adding that the three Task Forces were discussing indicators to monitor goals of United Nations conferences. Stating that much of the selection of indicators had been guided by the availability of data, she stressed the importance of helping countries to improve their data bases and data systems.

Speaking on the Fund's relationship with Bretton Woods institutions, she said it had been very good. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) had participated actively in the meetings of the Inter-Agency Task Forces, including in the discussions on the impact of structural adjustment on development activities. The International Organization for Migration had been a part of the working group on international migration. In addition, the Fund's relationship with WHO was developing quite well. So far as the question of individual roles in the area of reproductive health was concerned, the two had very specific areas of work.

Concerning interregional cooperation, she said the Fund was thinking of organizing a meeting between the small island developing States and CARICOM countries. She hoped that such a meeting would assist countries of both groups.

The Director of the Population Division of the Department for Economic and Social Information and Policy Analysis, JOSEPH CHAMIE, said the generation of indices was difficult where there were problems with the data. As a rule, it was difficult to get data on mortality and fertility. He also noted that in the past few years mortality rates had declined and improvements had been made in the area of fertility and reproductive health.

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