INFORMATION SERVICE

March 2007

Sultan Aziz of UNFPA Met Australian and New Zealand Parliamentarians

UNFPA Director of Asia and Pacific, Mr. Sultan Aziz, and UNFPA Representative in Fiji, Mr. Najib Assifi, visited Australia and met with the government and Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) officials, ambassadors, and academics on March 20-23. Mr. Aziz addressed the Parliamentary Group on Population and Development (PGPD) meeting where he emphasized the important role of the PGPD in addressing sexual and reproductive health issues in the region. The visit is expected to increase the commitment of cooperation between UNFPA and other related parties. In addition, further project and research collaboration opportunities may arise involving Australian academics.

New Zealand: On March 25-28, members of the New Zealand Parliamentarians' Group on Population and Development (NZPPD) met Mr. Aziz and Mr. Assifi to discuss issues including the UN Joint Programme for the Pacific, UN reform and how NZPPD can work with UNFPA. They also met with development NGOs, including the New Zealand Agency for International Development (NZAID), and government officials. New Zealand is a strong supporter of UNFPA, and the visit is an important opportunity to deepen and strengthen this partnership and for Mr. Aziz to provide an update on the regional population and development issues.

Mr. Aziz spoke to Radio New Zealand about the comments made by the New Zealand prime minister on 'serious challenges' in the Pacific in a recent visit to the US; and discussed UNFPA's work in the region in addressing issues of poverty, and sexual and reproductive health. In a Radio New Zealand International interview, Mr. Assifi spoke about gender-based violence in the Pacific and the upcoming Pacific Parliamentarians Assembly on Population and Development (PPAPD) meeting in Samoa on May.

Brainstorming Meeting on Maternal Health in South Asia

UNFPA (CST) Kathmandu and Women's Feature Service (WFS) of India organized the Brainstorming Meeting on Maternal Health in South Asia on March 30. The meeting attended by media persons, NGOs and UN agencies discussed how maternal health can be advocated with the help of print and electronic medias.

Mr. Wasim Zaman, Director of UNFPA/CST Kathmandu, and Ms. Angana Parekh, Director of WFS, joined by Dr. Saramma Mathai of UNFPA/CST and Mr. Minar Pimple and Mr. Ajit Sahi of the MDG Campaign of UNDP, to discuss about maternal health, MDG and media. Press editors from Nepal, Bangladesh and India attended. AFPPD was represented by its Executive Director.

Anti-Trafficking Bill Passed in Indonesia with Parliamentarian Forum Support

The House of Representatives of Indonesia had passed a long-awaited bill on human trafficking. All 10 fractions at the legislature registered their full support for the bill in a plenary session. Indonesian Forum of Parliamentarians on Population and Development (IFPPD) and UNICEF conducted a joint press conference which was attended by Ms. Meutia Hatta Swasono, Minister of Women Empowerment, and Ms. Latifah Iskandar, Chair of Special Committee on Anti-Trafficking Bill.

World Bank Parliamentarians Meeting in Cape Town

The 7th annual conference of the Parliamentary Network on the World Bank (PNoWB) brought together more than 200 parliamentarians from 100 countries in South Africa. It was the first time the heads of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), African Development Bank (AfDB) and World Bank (WB) had gathered in a public forum. AFPPD facilitated the participation of MPs from Kazakhstan, New Zealand, Korea and Iran.

This year's conference provided an excellent opportunity for legislators from around the globe to take the lead in putting Africa and poverty reduction at the heart of the global agenda; and reflected the role of parliamentarians in major development issues including reform of international financial institutions, governance and anti-corruption.

South Korean Delegation: Korean Parliamentary League on Children Population and Environment (CPE), a member of AFPPD, sent the delegation to the PNoWB meeting consisted on Hon. Ahn, Hong Joon, Hon. Shin Sang Jin, Hon. Lee Sang Kyung and Hon. Kin Choon Jin. After the meeting, the Korean delegation made a field visit to some hospitals working for HIV/AIDS pregnant women.

Indonesian Youth Forum on Tobacco Control Legislation

Jakarta, March 28: A youth seminar on tobacco control legislation with the theme, "Young Generation as Main Target of Tobacco Aggressive Marketing: Do They Need Protection?" was opened by the Speaker of the Parliament in Indonesia. The Indonesian Forum of Parliamentarians on Population and Development (IFPPD) petitioned and asked MPs for protection in several matters such as: tobacco aggressive marketing, prohibition on purchase of cigarettes in single stick and to minors, increase of tobacco products' price and tax, and establishment of smoke-free areas.

The requests in the petition were covered in one draft bill on controlling the impact of tobacco products on health which had been finalized by IFPPD in the end of 2005. The said draft bill was supported by 224 MPs and was submitted to the legislation, but had not yet been listed in the National Legislation Plan.

UNESCAP Celebrates 60th Anniversary

The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) commemorated its 60th anniversary in an impressive ceremony with guests include HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, Thai Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont and Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen. The celebration included a video message from Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary-General, followed by the presentation of Award for Lifetime Achievement to Mr. Sen, 1998 Nobel Prize in Economics.

International Women's Day 2007 in Thailand

Bangkok, March 8: International Women's Day was observed with a programme organized by the International Women's Day Working Group of representatives from various United Nations agencies and offices, under the theme of "Ending Impunity for Violence Against Women".

The opening statement was given by Mr. Kim Hak Su, Executive Secretary of UNESCAP; and Ms. Joana Merlin-Scholtes, United Nations Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative. Mr. Kim spoke of ESCAP's commitment to fight all forms of violence against women and conveyed UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon's message for the International Women's Day. Dr. Peter Piot, Executive Director of UNAIDS, was also invited to give an address as a guest speaker.

Ms. Mane, New UNFPA Deputy Executive Director

Geneva/New York, March 19: Ms. Purnima Mane of India was appointed as the new Deputy Executive Director of UNFPA in place of Mr. Kunio Waki of Japan who has retired. Ms. Mane joined the World Health Organization's Global Programme on AIDS in 1994, moving to UNAIDS at its inception in 1996 where she provided oversight to the area of behavioral sciences research, and gender and AIDS. From 1999 to 2003, she worked at the Population Council in New York, where she later became Vice-President and Director of International Programmes.

Special Note

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