INFORMATION SERVICE

October 2007

Political Commitment of Parliamentarians Highlighted in APCRSH by AFPPD

Hyderabad, October 29-31: AFPPD organized a symposium on "Enhancing Political Commitment for Reproductive and Sexual Health in Asia and the Pacific" during the 4th Asia-Pacific Conference on Reproductive and Sexual Health and Rights (APCRSH). The symposium aimed to review the state of prevailing political commitment, and to discuss future concerns in family planning and Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR). The panel was opened by Mr. Sultan Aziz, Director of the Asia-Pacific Division of UNFPA, and chaired by Mr. Tolofuaivalelei Falemoe, MP and Speaker of the Parliament of Samoa. The speakers of the symposium included Ms. S. Oyun, MP (Mongolia); Mr. Jagannath Manda, MP (India); Ms. Tuti Indarsih Loekman Soetrisno, MP (Indonesia); Senator Rodolfo Biazon (Philippines); and Mr. Robert Oakeshott, MP (Australia). Other parliamentarians present at the symposium were Mr. Try Cheang Hout, MP (Cambodia); Mr. Virgilio Maria Dias Marcal, MP (Timor-Leste); and Ms. Maria da Costa Exposto, MP (Timor-Leste). APCRSH brought together more than 1200 participants including NGOs, government officials, donors, UN representatives, media persons and parliamentarians to discuss issues related to SRHR.

AFPPD Parliamentarians at Women Deliver Conference

London, October 18-20: AFPPD facilitated a parliamentarian dialogue on "Women's Health: Parliamentary Initiatives Across the Regions of the World", which was co-organized with the European Parliamentary Forum on Population and Development (EPF). With Mr. Neil Datta, Secretary of EPF, moderating the session, parliamentarians from Africa, America, Asia and Europe highlighted the situation of maternal health in their respective countries. Various initiatives of the decision-making bodies and the role played by parliamentarians in decreasing maternal mortality were also discussed. The panel of parliamentarians included Ms. Tuti Indarsih Loekman Soetrisno, MP (Indonesia); Ms. Hilda Solis, MP (USA); Ms. Ximena Flores, MP (Bolivia); Ms. Lediana Mafuru Mng'ong'o, MP (Tanzania); Ms. Ssinabulya Sylvia Namabidde, MP (Uganda); and Ms. Anne van Lancker, MP (Belgium) and President of EPF.

The dialogue was one of the sessions in Women Deliver Conference. The conference brought together 2,000 ministers, experts, researchers, health professionals and reproductive health advocates to focus on creating political will to save the lives and improve the health of women and children. Aside from Ms. Soetrisno, AFPPD also facilitated the participation of Ms. Steve Chadwick, MP (New Zealand) and Chair of the Standing Committee on Women of AFPPD; Mr. Guowei Sang, MP (China) and Vice-Chair of AFPPD; Ms. Chantheum Latmany, MP (Laos); Ms. Chitralekha Yadav, MP (Nepal); Ms. Ana Theresa Baraquel, MP (Philippines); Ms. Abike Dabiri, MP (Nigeria); and other parliamentarians.

Steve Chadwick Appointed as Minister of Conservation and Women's Affairs

Wellington, October 31: Ms. Steve Chadwick, MP (New Zealand) and Chair of the Standing Committee on Women of AFPPD, was appointed as the new Minister of Conservation and Women's Affairs. "I can now discuss issues around the cabinet table instead of nipping at the heels of ministers from outside. I will continue working on reducing family violence and sexual abuse, improving the health of New Zealanders, and creating opportunities to balance between work and play", she said.

Purnima Mane Addressed Vietnamese Parliamentarians

Hanoi, November 2: More than 100 Vietnamese parliamentarians and members of the Vietnam Association of Parliamentarians on Population and Development (VAPPD), a member of AFPPD, attended the annual meeting of VAPPD to discuss the annual demographic survey in Vietnam for 2007. Ms. Purnima Mane, Deputy Executive Director of UNFPA; Mr. Sultan Aziz, Director of the Asia-Pacific Division of UNFPA; and Mr. Ian Howie, Representative of UNFPA-Vietnam; addressed the meeting. Election of VAPPD's office bearers followed the event - Ms. Truong Thi Mai as the Chair, and Mr. Nguyen Van Tien as the Vice-Chair and General Secretary of VAPPD.

European Policymakers Should Focus on Family Planning Aid

Brussels, October 9: European policymakers neglect family planning in their development aid, concluded a new study presented by the German Foundation for World Population and the European Parliamentary Forum on Population and Development. According to the study called Euromapping, the share of family planning aid in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) population assistance fell from 30% to 9% between 2001 and 2004. Also, recent years saw a shift towards increased funding for HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment at the expense of other population assistance. The study similarly highlighted that the European governments have committed to double development assistance by 2010 while actual disbursements decreased in 2005-2006.

UNFPA's Role in Empowering Women Underscored by Mr. Ban Ki-moon

New York, October 2: Mr. Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary-General, stressed that the empowerment of women is vital in achieving peace, security, improved living standards and respect for human rights. During the Americans for UNFPA's "Gala for the Health and Dignity of Women", he informed that too many women were subjected to violence, died during pregnancy and childbirth as their rights to sexual and reproductive health were denied, and infected with HIV because their health were not protected. "All of these underscore the importance of UNFPA's efforts", he said. Mr. Ki-moon also encouraged donor countries to continue their support to UNFPA.

India's Parliamentary Hearing on Sex Education in Schools

New Delhi, October 1: The Committee on Petitions in India, under the chairmanship of Mr. Shri Venkaiah Naidu, MP, examined the prayers of petitioners and decided to undertake wider consultations with stakeholders for generating a national debate on the introduction of sex education in secondary schools. There were severe criticisms on the recent move of the Ministry of Human Resource Development for introducing sex education in the form of Adolescence Education Programme.

Cambodia's Aging Population

Cambodia's aging population phenomenon does not escape the global trend in the world population. Although old people accounted 6 percent of the total population, they will increase to 10 percent and 26 percent in 2025 and 2050, respectively. This will be due to the decreasing fertility rate and the increasing life expectancy in Cambodia. In spite of this trend, the country still ranks lowest in population aging in Southeast Asia for the next five decades.

Dates to Remember

AFPPD is currently engaged in the preparation for the following events:

• AFPPD-UNDP's "Brainstorming Meeting of Parliamentarians Advocacy on MDG" in Bangkok, Thailand on 6-7 November
  AFPPD, UNFPA and JTF's 5th Asian Women Parliamentarians' and Ministers' Conference in Beijing, China on 27-28 November
  AFPPD and UNFPA-CST, Bangkok's workshop on "Reproductive Health Commodity Security (RHCS) Advocacy in Strengthening National Capacity for Achieving RHCS" in Bangkok, Thailand on 11-13 December
• AFPPD, UNFPA and AHRN's workshop on "Promoting of HIV/AIDS, Reproductive Health and Harm Reduction for Parliament Staff" in Chiang Mai, Thailand on 14-15 December