INFORMATION SERVICE

March 2005

Parliamentarians with Teaching Background Meet in Krabi, Thailand

Around 75 members of parliament with teaching background, experts, and youth leaders assembled in Krabi, a tsunami affected area in southern Thailand to discuss their role in Education, and Population issues and its relation with Sustainable Development.

Mr. Yoshio Yatsu, Chairman of AFPPD and MP Japan, Mr. Sheldon Shaeffer, Regional Director, UNESCO, Bangkok, Ms. Cheng Wing-Sie, Regional Advisor, HIV/AIDS, UNICEF, Mr. Peter Chen, Advisor, UNFPA/CST Bangkok, and others addressed and exchanged views with parliamentarians from 16 Asia Pacific and Central Asian countries. Around 8 Asian youth organization representatives provided by ICYO, IPPF, PSI, and others also made an impression through a youth dialogue with parliamentarians.

A Krabi Statement called for appropriate education on matters of human sexuality and reproductive health and respond to gender equality and equitry as well as healthy gender relationships as critical component of education.

The Vietnamese Association of Parliamentarians on Population and Development (VAPPD) in cooperation with different organisations has been actively working for the cause of women empowerment, gender equity and equality. VAPPD has recently involved women parliamentarians from Vietnam on 10 regional workshops on capacity building in the areas of contact with voters, questioning in parliament sessions, and reading and recommendation of bills. VAPPD has also organised 3 regional workshops for women candidates who are running for provincial assembly during local election, and similarly organised 3 national seminars of different social topics, such as social insurance policy, voluntary social insurance, and female laborforce participation. Other activities include conducting of regional survey of female labor force and study missions of female parliamentarians to other countries to learn and share experiences on gender and social policy. These activities were supported by AFPPD.

Population Activist appointed as Parliamentary Secretary of CIDA, Canada

Ms. Paddy Tornsey, MP Canada is now the Parliamentary Secretary for the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). Ms. Paddy Tornsey has been a member of Canadian Association of Parliamentarians on Population and Development (CAPPD) and also attended its meetings.

Asian Parliamentarians and Women Ministers played an important role at the 10 Years Review of Beijing Platform during the 46th Session of the Commision on the Status of Women (CSW), February 28-March 11, 2005 at the UN in New York. Several AFPPD related National Parliamentary Committees briefed ministers and parliamentarians on RH and related issues and the Asian women parliamentarians, ministers and elected leaders had a special meeting with Mrs. Thoraya Obaid, Executive Director of UNFPA on March 4, 2005.

12 members of parliament will visit Vietnam from on March 20-25, 2005 to study Vietnam poverty reduction and related programmes. This World Bank arranged study visit will have parliamentarians from Australia, Korea, and Philippines proposed by AFPPD.

Philippines holds 1st Multi-Sectoral Legislative Policy Conference on Human Development

Sen. Dr. Malinee Sukavejworakit, Secretary General, AFPPD addressed the AFPPD supported 1st National Multi-Sectoral Legislative Policy Conference in Human Development in Pasay City, Philippines on March 14-15, 2005. She spoke on the linkages between population management and economic development and placed special emphasis on maximizing the utility of resources available.

Person to Person Advocacy Programme Training in India

Training of discussants who will meet and interview parliamentarians on one to one basis was conducted in the Indian Association of Parliamentarians on Population and Development (IAPPD) center in New Delhi, India with the assistance of professors and experts from Jawaharalal Nehru University, New Delhi. IAPPD is conducting PPAP to individually meet maximum number of Indian parliamentarians and discuss population and development related issues.