A five-year review of progress towards the implementation of the programme of action of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD)

This report constitutes a five-year review of the 20-year Programme of Action agreed at the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in Cairo in 1994. It was prepared by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) to be used as a background document at the Hague Forum, examining the progress made towards the goals set out in the original plan. It encompasses the findings of numerous round tables, technical meetings, consultations and a global enquiry conducted by UNFPA in mid-1998.

The ICPD Programme of Action highlights the links between population and development issues and defines their various objectives in terms of the individual’s rights and needs rather than centralised demographic targets. This report focuses on four main areas of the Programme of Action (an enabling institutional environment, the promotion of gender equity and equality, sexual and reproductive health, and partnership building) assessing for each one what has been achieved so far and what remains to be done. It concludes by dealing with issues of funding.

Although the situation varies from one country to another, the report makes the following general observations:

• There has been considerable progress in terms of sexual and reproductive health; by mid-1998, many countries had made policy, legislative and/or institutional changes promoting reproductive rights and sexual health services, such as the right to have free access to reproductive health services, including the voluntary choice of family planning methods.
• By contrast, the promotion of gender equity and equality has faced major obstacles. These include the difficulty of applying such concepts in various socio-economic settings, the confusion that still surrounds the exact definition of these concepts, and the lack of data that would help define precise goals.
• There has been much progress in the collaboration of governments with nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) and civil society, and positive changes have also been observed in the processes of participation and consultation and in the increasing acceptance of innovative development approaches.

However, much still remains to be done, and the report recommends that:

• Governments should strengthen their commitment to gender equality and equity and strengthen cooperation with NGOs and civil society in their efforts to empower women
• Appropriate monitoring and information systems for gender equity and equality should be developed so that progress can be measured. Specific goals should also be clearly defined as there still seems to be much confusion about what gender equity and equality actually mean and entail
• Efforts towards better sexual and reproductive health should be further strengthened in all areas: communication and education, access to services for adolescents, male responsibility, quality family planning services, women’s health and safe motherhood, access to safe abortions, and programmes for HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases
• If partnerships have already been strengthened, the human resources and the institutional capacities of civil society should be increased; social mobilisation efforts should be intensified; and the international community should be encouraged to meet its commitments, especially with regard to issues of funding.