PPD :: Newsletter : Issue 23 - September

The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and UNFPA were jointly organized the "Asia-Pacific High-level Forum on ICPD at 15: Accelerating Progress towards the ICPD and Millennium Development Goals" held in Bangkok on Wednesday 16 and Thursday 17 September 2009. This initiative was part of a series of activities commemorating the 15th Anniversary of ICPD.

The High-level Forum congregated 130 participants, including ministers, senior officials and civil society representatives from 30 countries and areas in Asia and the Pacific. Participants’ policy recommendations were included in a Declaration on Population and Development adopted at the forum’s closing."This is a moment of opportunity", the Declaration states, with just five years left to realize the Cairo objectives and the MDGs. It identifies a set of key actions countries in the region must take to close critical gaps in implementing the Program of Action and address new challenges, such as the global economic crisis and climate change.Mr. Harry. S. Jooseery, Executive Director represented PPD at this High-level event.

Asia Pacific NGO Call to Action to accelerate the achievement of the ICPD and MDGs

UNFPA and Government of Thailand organized a NGO forum and an experience-sharing meeting on South- South Cooperation at Thailand on 15 September 2009. More than 60 participants from 16 countries came together to suggest actions to accelerate the achievement of the ICPD objectives and Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in the Asia Pacific region.

NGO and civil society representatives, members of parliament, representatives of UN agencies, and donors engaged in panel discussions and identified critical Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) issues affecting the region and possible way forward. Mr. Harry. S. Jooseery, Executive Director portrayed about PPD’s 15-year experiences and firmly proclaimed that indeed South-South Cooperation is an established model to accelerate the ICPD and MDGs.

Vietnams joins PPD

PPD mandate for the promotion of Reproductive Health, Population and Development through South-South Cooperation is gaining positive image and this has been reinforced by the interest of Developing Countries to join the alliance. At the Annual Board Meeting 2009 of PPD, Vietnam expressed its intention to join the alliance, which was approved unanimously by all Board Members. H.E. Mr. Ghulam Nabi Azad, Chair PPD Board and Honorable Minister, Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India and Mr. Harry S. Jooseery, Executive Director of PPD welcomed Vietnam as 25th member of PPD and wished that they would share their potentialities, experiences and expertise with other member countries in the context of South-South Cooperation.

Fourteen Annual Board meeting of PPD

Partners in Population and Development (PPD) organized its 14th Annual Board meeting at Beijing International Convention Centre, China with remarkable participation of its Board member. This year Board meeting, ornamented with active participation of 17 Ministers (PPD’s Board Member) from different member countries, representatives from different donor agencies, Partner Country Coordinators and Government delegations from Cambodia, Vietnam and Tanzania.

Participants of the Board Meeting

H.E. Mr. Ghulam Nabi Azad, Honorable Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare of the Government of India and Chair of PPD Board presided over this event. The board reviewed the programs that were made in the year 2009, expressed their deepest appreciation to the Executive Director and his team, and pledged all support and assistance to him in his future endeavors. The Board Members renewed commitment and support of their respective Governments towards South-South Cooperation in the greater interest of the developing countries. The Board placed on records the substantial assistance and support of United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, The David and Lucile Packard Foundation to PPD.

The Board Member admitted Vietnam as new member of PPD and declared that the 15th Annual Board meeting will be on November 2010 in Indonesia.

Asia Pacific Youth Forum on Reproductive and Sexual Health & Rights

The health of young people in Asia-Pacific region is in jeopardy as many of them have inadequate preparation for sexual lives, warns a declaration from the Youth Forum on 17 October, which proceeds the 5th Asia Pacific Conference on Reproductive and Sexual Health & Rights (APCRSHR).

The declaration called on national governments and civil societies to offer consultation and services on sexual and reproductive health to young people, especially to marginalized groups such as migrant workers. The declaration noted that poverty and malnutrition make young people in the region vulnerable to greater risks of HIV transmission.

The Fifth APCRSHR, co-sponsored by the National Population and Family Planning Commission of China, the United Nations Population Fund, PPD and the International Planned Parenthood Federation.

The 5th Asia Pacific Conference on Reproductive and Sexual Health & Rights

The 5th Asia-Pacific Conference on Reproductive and Sexual Health & Rights Conference (APCRSHR) held in Beijing, China from 17th to 20th October 2009. Around 1,000 people across the world attended this Conference and the theme of this year’s conference: “Working for Universal Reproductive and Sexual Health and Rights: Building on the ICPD PoA and the MDGs”.

H.E. Mr. Ghulam Nabi Azad, Chair, PPD Board and
Honorable Minister, Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
Government of India delivering speech
in the opening session of the Conference

“ICPD is about human rights and choices,” Thoraya Ahmed Obaid, Executive Director of UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, declared in her opening address. She said there have been important gains since 1994, but many countries, particularly in South Asia, are still far from the MDG maternal mortality target.

Dr. Gill Greer, Director General of the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), said the global recession is threatening support for NGOs working for reproductive and sexual health and rights. She stressed that fundraising necessary to combat climate change must not reduce resources needed for development.

Dr. Zhao Baige, Vice Minister of China’s National Population and Family Planning Commission (NPFPC), noted her country’s dramatic reductions in fertility and maternal deaths in the past three decades, and said the national family planning program had moved from an administrative approach to one of informed choice.

During the different plenary meetings and dozens of smaller sessions, participants shared scientific evidence and programmatic experience from many countries, covering a broad set of issues related to population and reproductive and sexual health and rights.

These included, among others: poverty alleviation and access to health care; climate change; ageing; migration and trafficking; sexuality and culture; pregnancy, abortion and childbirth; linkages between reproductive health and HIV/AIDS programs; violence against women; reproductive health in crises; South – North – South cooperation; Sexuality education and youth-friendly services.
A Youth Forum on 17 October precedes the Conference. Young people from throughout the Asia Pacific region received advocacy training in a pre-conference Youth Forum and played active roles in the three-day gathering.

Mr. Harry Jooseery, Executive Director of PPD presenting
in one of the session

Executive Director of PPD, Mr. Harry S. Jooseery made a presentation at the Plenary Session on Promoting and enhancing partnership in Sexual Reproductive Health Rights. PPD is among the list of the organizers of this international event. Conference organizers and supporters included China Family Planning Association (CFPA), International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), IPPF East & South East Asia, Oceania Region (ESEAOR), China Population Association (CPA), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Sociology of Women and Gender Research Association of Chinese Association of Sociology (SWGRA, CAS) and National Population and Family Planning Commission of China (NPFPC).

Executive Committee Meeting

The Fourteenth Executive Committee Meeting of Partners in Population and Development (PPD) was held at North Star Continental Grand Hotel, Beijing, China on 17 October 2009 under the leadership of H.E. Mr. Ghulam Nabi Azad, Honorable Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare of the Government of India and Chair of PPD. In his opening remarks, the Chair of PPD welcomed the Executive Committee Members to the meeting and thanked China for the warm welcome and generous hospitality accorded to himself, members of his delegation and other members of the Executive Committee.

One of the session of the Executive Committee Meeting

The Vice Chair, H.E. Dr. Li Bin, Minister of National Population and Family Planning Commission (NPFPC), Government of the People’s Republic of China, Secretary; Dr. Boniface Omuga K’Oyugi MBS, CEO of National Coordinating Agency for Population and Development (NCAPD) ,Government of Kenya; Treasurer, Prof. Dr. Nabiha Gueddana, Director-General, National Office of Family and Population, Government of Tunisia ; Host Country Board Member, H.E. Prof. Dr. AFM Ruhal Haque, Honorable Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh and Executive Director of PPD Mr. Harry S. Jooseery were attended this meeting.

Executive committee members thanked the UNFPA, the Hewlett Foundation, and the Packard Foundation for their technical and financial support to PPD. They also reviewed and approved a number of important decisions as recommended by the Executive Director.