Mr. Chairman,

Excellencies, Distinguished Participants, Ladies and Gentlemen

I am honored to make the statement on behalf of Partners in Population and Development (PPD) at this 52nd Session of the United Nations Commission on Population and Development. As you all may know, PPD is an Inter-governmental Organization of 26 developing countries from Asia, Africa, Latin America and North Africa and the Middle East, launched by ten founding countries in 1994 in Cairo on the occasion of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) with the aim to institutionalize and promote South-South Cooperation in Reproductive Health, Population and Development for the implementation of the ICPD plan of Action.

Mr. Chairman

PPD welcomes the theme of the 52nd Session of the UNCPD as it is closely and intimately linked to its founding principles and mandate and congratulate you and all delegates for the adoption of the Declaration of this 52nd session.

Since its Launching, PPD focused its work on six priority areas part of the ICPD Plan of Action: Integrating Population Dynamics into national plans; Ensuring Adolescents access to Sexual and reproductive health and rights, improving maternal and child health; Strengthening social cohesion of migrants, promoting healthy ageing and enhancing understanding of the relation between poverty and reproductive health. To address these issues, PPD’s strategic interventions are implemented through advocacy and policy development, sharing of Information and best practices, capacity development and building new partnerships utilizing South-South cooperation.

Over the last 25 years, PPD member countries have achieved remarkable progress in improving their demographic and health indicators through national high level commitments and effective south-south and triangular cooperation programs which contributed in declining fertility, reducing Maternal and under five mortality and improved contraceptive prevalence; resulting impact on age structures and offering an excellent opportunity for harnessing demographic dividend in PPD member countries.

One of the salient events to review progress for the implementation of the ICPD plan of action and the SDGs is the International Inter-ministerial Conference on South-South Cooperation in Population and Development that PPD organizes every year with support from its Partners including UNFPA. This forum provides a unique plate form for Ministers, senior government officials and Parliamentarians from PPD member countries, representatives from International organizations including UN Agencies and NGOs, academia and experts to debate emerging issues in population and development and exchange experiences, solutions and best practices to address the challenges in their respective countries. The 15th International Conference held in Bali, Indonesia in 2018, highlighted in its outcome document “The Bali Call For Action” the renewed commitment and political will of PPD member countries to promote South-South and triangular Cooperation for the implementation of ICPD plan action and the 2030 agenda.

Mr Chairman

The Bali Call for Action along with the adopted Joint Statement between PPD and UNFPA reaffirmed the commitment of PPD member countries to the goals and principles of the ICPD PoA and the SDGs and resolved to translate these commitments into national agenda with concrete actions to attain universal access to RH and leave no one behind.

PPD member countries encourage and support the establishment and development of Centers of Excellence for SSC in Population and Development in its member countries which are playing an increasing role in knowledge sharing, technical assistance, transfer of technology and institutional networking for implementing ICPD Plan of Action and SDGs.

As the year 2019 marked the 50th anniversary of UNFPA; the 40th anniversary of Buenos Aires Plan of Action on south-south cooperation and the celebration of the 25th anniversary of PPD and of the ICPD, the 16th International Inter-ministerial Conference on SSC in Population and Development to be held in Tunisia in October 2019 will offer an excellent opportunity to renew our commitments taken in Cairo 25 years ago towards the achievement of the ICPD plan of action and the SDGs through effective, transformational and sustained south-south and triangular cooperation programs. PPD Member countries expressed their full support to Kenya for the Nairobi Summit where they will share concrete examples of south-South Cooperation programs in accelerating the implementation of the ICPD Plan of Action and the SDGs.

Thank you Mr. Chairman.