Muscat, 17 April- With the 20-year anniversary of the landmark 1994 Cairo International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) approaching, the first of a set of Regional Conferences for Population and Development of the globalICPD Beyond 2014 Review will take place in Cairo from 24 through 26 June 2013.
The ICPD Beyond 2014 Review is an opportunity to influence the future of global population and development policy at national, regional and global levels. It provides a once in a generation chance to define what needs to be done to deliver a more equal, more sustainable world for the 7 billion people - and more - who share it. The Review will identify progress and achievements towards the goals set out in the landmark International Conference on Population and Development, when 179 governments committed to a 20 year Programme of Action to deliver human rights based development.
"Our vision is grounded in certain core values and principles that are embedded in the ICPD Programme of Action: That every person has the right to sexual and reproductive health, every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is safe, every young person has the education and services to grow up healthy, every girl is treated with dignity and respect, and violence against women should and can end. Achieving these aspirations requires global solidarity and local action." Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin, Executive Director of UNFPA
Evidence of what has worked and where challenges remain will be collected from governments, civil society organizations and partners using the ICPD Global Survey, civil society consultations and a series of thematic conferences. The Beyond 2014 Review process will engage world leaders from governments and civil society and create a renewed consensus and global commitment to create a more equal and more sustainable world.Nineteen years ago, 179 countries met in Cairo for the United Nations International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) to address all aspects of human life. It was a twenty year Programme of Action that worked on identifying that every person counts, and that population is not about numbers but about people and their quality of life.
The ICPD Programme of Action, sometimes referred to as the Cairo Consensus, was remarkable in its recognition that reproductive health and rights, as well as women's empowerment and gender equality, are cornerstones of population and development programmes. The Consensus is rooted in principles of human rights and respect for national sovereignty and various religious and cultural backgrounds.
UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, delivers a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is safe, and every young person's potential is fulfilled. It has a specific role and expertise in relation to population and development issues. It has been mandated as the co-ordinating body for the ICPD Beyond 2014 review and has particular responsibilities in leading the process.
