UN COMMISSION ON POPULATION AND DEVELOPMENT TO MEET IN NEW YORK, 22 - 26 MARCH
| Press Release POP/892 |
Background Release
UN COMMISSION ON POPULATION AND DEVELOPMENT TO MEET IN NEW YORK, 22 - 26 MARCH
Theme: Review of Action Programme
Of 1994 Conference on Population and Development
The second Review and Appraisal of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) will be the theme of the thirty-seventh session of the Commission on Population and Development, meeting at United Nations Headquarters from 22 to 26 March.
During its week-long session, the Commission will assess the implementation of the recommendations of the International Conference on Population and Development, held in Cairo in September 1994, and hold a general debate on national experiences in implementing the Programme of Action.
Highlighting this year’s Commission meeting will be keynote addresses by Brunson McKinley, Director General of the Geneva-based International Organization for Migration (IOM); Barbara Crossette, former United Nations Bureau Chief of The New York Times; and Riad Tabbarah, Director of the Centre for Development Studies and Projects, Beirut, Lebanon, and former Lebanese Ambassador to the United States.
On Tuesday, 23 March, at 11:30 a.m., Mr. McKinley will address the Commission on “International Migration and Development in the 21st Century”. At the same time on Wednesday, 24 March, Ms. Crossette will present a journalist perspective to the question, “Has the Cairo Consensus lost Momentum?” Mr. Tabbarah will discuss “ICPD+10 or Bucharest+30?: The longer-term view” on Thursday, 25 March, also at 11:30 a.m. Delegations, media representatives and Secretariat staff are invited to attend.
Other items to be discussed by the Commission include the programme implementation and future programme of work of the United Nations Secretariat in the field of population.
Cairo Programme of Action
The 16-chapter Programme of Action, adopted unanimously on 13 September 1994, reflected the view that the early stabilization of world population would make an important contribution to the achievement of sustainable development, and a consensus that slower population growth could buy more time for societies to combat poverty and protect the environment.
Among other issues, the Programme calls on all countries to make reproductive health care available through the primary health care system; help couples and individuals meet their reproductive goals; prevent unwanted pregnancies and make quality family planning services affordable, acceptable and accessible to all; increase life expectancy; and improve the quality of health care.
The text covers a wide range of subjects, including population levels and trends, population growth, population age structure and distribution, family structure, reproductive rights and reproductive health, health and mortality, international migration, population programmes, poverty and economic disparities, patterns of production and consumption, the environment, and education.
The Programme achieved a great number of innovations in terms of issues, approaches and activities, particularly in the way it dealt with reproductive and gender issues, its focus on achieving sustainable development, and the role given to education, particularly of girls, in effecting changes. The Programme also gave wide and systematic recognition to the role of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and provided detailed recommendations regarding resource needs and institutional mechanisms for achieving its goals and objectives.
Reports before Commission
The report of the Secretary-General on the Review and appraisal of the progress made in achieving the goals and objectives of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development (document E/CN.2004/3) is the second report prepared on this topic. The report of the Secretary-General on the first review and appraisal of the progress made in achieving the Programme’s goals was presented to the Commission on Population and Development in 1999 (document E/CN.9/1999/PC/2).
The report finds that in 2004 world population stands at 6.4 billion persons. Between 1994 and 2004, 787 million persons were added to the world population, with 95 per cent of that increase (747 million persons) occurring in the less developed regions. Six developing countries account for about half of the world’s annual population growth: India (21 per cent); China (13 per cent); and Pakistan, Nigeria, Bangladesh and Indonesia (about 4 per cent each). Nearly half of the inhabitants of the world live in urban areas.
At the time of the Cairo Conference, world fertility was around three children per woman. Today, world fertility is estimated at 2.7 children. Life expectancy at birth in the world is approximately 66 years, up from 64 years 10 years ago. Although considerable progress continues to be made in health improvements, the last decade of the twentieth century witnessed major setbacks, particularly in countries affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic and in those affected by conflict. In the 53 countries most affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic, it is estimated that HIV has been the cause of nearly 20 million excess deaths. The 1990s saw continued increases in international population movements. As of mid-2000, approximately 175 million persons, or 3 per cent of world population, were international migrants.
The Programme of Action identified population growth as an important element in the development process and stressed that, in order to achieve an improved quality of life for present and future generations, it was important to facilitate the transition towards low birth and death rates, and, hence, towards slower population growth.
Since the adoption of the Programme of Action, notes the present report, substantial progress has been made. The world is beginning to see the end of rapid population growth; nearly all countries have experienced some reduction of fertility; men and women are closer to achieving their desired family size and spacing of children; and mortality is declining in most countries. There is evidence that many countries are taking the necessary steps to confront the HIV/AIDS epidemic and other mortality crises, and governments are starting to address the myriad concerns related to international migration.
However, there have also been shortfalls and gaps. Progress has not been universal, and if the current trends are not reversed, warns the report, many countries will not achieve the internationally agreed goals. Availability of financial and human resources, institutional capacities, and partnerships involving governments, the international community, NGOs and civil society are the three factors that affect the full implementation of the Programme of Action. The report calls for a concerted effort to address them.
The Commission will also consider the Secretary-General’s report on the Flow of financial resources for assisting in the implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development: a 10-year review (document E/CN.9/2004/4).
Ten years after the Cairo Conference, the report says, it is clear that current levels of resource mobilization are inadequate to fully implement the Cairo agenda. It is also clear that resource gaps are especially large in poor countries. Though the resources for population have increased steadily over the last 10 years, the increase was too slow to meet the Conference target of
$17 billion by the year 2000. Thus, in order to achieve the $18.5 billion target for 2005, the international community should allocate a larger share of official development assistance (ODA) to population activities and increase the overall levels of aid, while developing countries mobilize additional domestic resources.
However, provisional figures for 2002 and estimates for 2003 are encouraging. Donor assistance increased to $3 billion in 2002 and is expected to increase slightly in 2003. A rough estimate of resources mobilized by developing countries, as a group, adjusted for decentralized government expenditures in one large country, yielded a figure of $11.7 billion for 2003. Still, concludes the report, the challenge is to reach the target for 2005. The consequences of resource shortfalls include significant increases in unintended pregnancies, abortions, maternal morbidity and mortality, infant and child mortality, as well as AIDS-related morbidity and mortality. Without a firm commitment to population, reproductive health and gender issues, and the allocation of financial resources, it is unlikely that any of the goals and targets of the Conference or the Millennium Summit will be met.
A report of the Secretary-General on programme implementation and progress of work in the field of population in 2003: Population Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs (document E/CN.9/2004/5), covers such topics as fertility analysis; mortality and migration; world population estimates and projections, population and development; monitoring, coordination and dissemination of population information; and technical cooperation in population. A Division report on Levels and Trends of Contraceptive Use as Assessed in 2002 reveals that world contraceptive prevalence is estimated to have reached 63 per cent in 2000, up from a level of 54 per cent in 1993. Contraceptive use is dominated by modern methods, which account for 90 per cent of use worldwide.
The Division completed the 2002 Revision of its biennial world population estimates and projections to the year 2050. According to the 2002 Revision, despite projected lower fertility and increased mortality risks, particularly due to HIV/AIDS, world population is expected to increase by 2.6 billion people, from 6.3 billion in 2003 to 8.9 billion in 2050. The Division also completed a new set of long-range population projections that are groundbreaking in two respects: they extended the time horizon to 2300 and were carried out by country. According to the medium-range scenario, world population will rise from the current 6.3 billion to around 9 billion in 2300.
According to another completed study, World Population Policies 2003, the most significant demographic concern in the world among governments is HIV/AIDS. Other major concerns include low fertility and population ageing in developed countries, and rapid population growth and infant, child and maternal mortality in developing countries. A study on the Impact of AIDS found that the epidemic is having and will continue to have a major and far-reaching impact both on the demography of affected countries, as well as on their socio-economic development.
In the Report of the Bureau of the Commission on Population and Development on its intersessional meeting held in Vilnius, Lithuania, on 13 and 14 November 2003 (document E/CN/.9/2004/2), the Bureau made a number of recommendations concerning the work programme of the Population Division. The Bureau stressed the importance for the Population Division to continue to maintain a comprehensive approach to population issues and to investigate new and emerging issues in the field of population. The Bureau also recommended that the Division continue to convene technical meetings to shed light on key population concerns of the international community.
Other Documents
Also before the Commission will be the Proposed Strategic Framework for the biennium 2006-2007, a statement submitted by the World Population Foundation, a non-governmental organization in special consultative status with the Economic and Social Council, and a statement submitted by Interact Worldwide (formerly Population Concern), International Family Health and the Italian Association for Women in Development, non-governmental organizations in special consultative status with the Economic and Social Council, as well as notes by the Secretariat on the provisional agenda for next year’s session of the Commission, and on the organization of the work of the session.
Background of Commission
The Commission was set up in 1946 under the name of the Population Commission to study and advise the Economic and Social Council on population changes and their effect on economic and social conditions. Later, the name was changed to the Commission on Population and Development following the
International Conference on Population and Development in 1994; and it was decided that from 1996 on the Commission would meet annually to review the implementation of the Programme of Action of the Cairo Conference.
The Commission normally comprises 47 members, who are elected on the basis of equitable geographic distribution and serve a term of four years. In 2004, the members are: Austria; Bangladesh; Belgium; Bolivia; Botswana; Cameroon; China; Democratic Republic of the Congo; Egypt; El Salvador; France; Gambia; Germany; Ghana; Guyana; Hungary; India; Indonesia; Iran; Ireland; Jamaica; Japan; Kenya; Libya; Lithuania; Luxembourg; Madagascar; Malaysia; Mauritania; Mexico; Netherlands; Nicaragua; Nigeria; Norway; Peru; Philippines; Poland; Russian Federation; Turkey; United States; and Zambia. Six members remain to be elected.
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