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greater efforts to make sure that womenescape from falling into pitifulcircumstances? Having said this, it isincumbent on us, as electedrepresentatives of our people, to be fullyaware of the importance of the issueand take appropriate legislative actions,as well as allocate necessary budgetaryresources, he said.

He also spoke of AFPPDs missionin elevating the status of womensissues in the population anddevelopment policy. In the past 25years, AFPPD has always recognize thatwomen's issues are usually at thebottom of the population agenda andtherefore, has always had a keeninterest in addressing women's issues,Mr. Fukuda said.

He outlined several legislativeaccomplishments of womens issuesin countries such as Cambodia, ThePhilippines, and Sri Lanka.

The understanding of womensissues would be the key in solving

population challenges in bothindustrialized and developing countries.It is true to say that the rapid decline ofpopulation in some industrial countriespresents us with certain problems thatare not easy to cope up with. However, Iam confident that as we become fullyaware of womens issues, we will beable to overcome the challenges we faceby slowing the process of populationdecline, and putting in place measuresthat will achieve both objectives ofsustainability and ensuring nationalvitality, he continued.

Mr. Fukuda emphasized theimportance of womens participation inevery level of decision-making, specially

From L. to R.: Ms. Steve Chadwick, MP (New Zealand), NZPPD Chair and AFPPDStanding Committee on Women Chair; Rt. Hon. Helen Clark, Prime Minister of NewZealand; and Mr. Yasuo Fukuda, MP (Japan) and AFPPD Chairman

We must take appropriate legislative actions,as well as allocate necessary budgetaryresources

Mr. Yasuo Fukuda

in the parliament. Theparticipation of women innational parliaments issomething which isencouraging with all of youhere today. I believe it isextremely important thatthe opinions of women,who make up half of theworld's population, shouldbe adequately reflected inthe national parliaments,Mr. Fukuda added.

We can never stop our

Programme of Action,

Ms. Steve Chadwick, MP (New

Zealand), NZPPD Chair and AFPPDStanding Committee on Women Chair

In her speechduring theo p e n i n gceremony, Ms.Steve Chadwickechoed Mr.F u k u d a semphasis onw o m e n sparticipation inevery decision-making level. Parliamentarians mustcome up with a programme of actionthat enshrines the importance of theinvolvement of women in all levels ofgovernance to ensure that the rightpriorities are set, that thepolicies do not sit on ashelf and that legislativereform keeps up with thepace of womens

demands wherever welive in this region. We cannever stop ourProgramme of Action.Either the work of ourfounders will simplydissipate or at worst,disappear and theagenda of the Populationand Development set by

ICPD in 1994 will be subsumed andovertaken by other male-led initiatives,she said.

She added that womensparticipation would also bridge the gapbetween the goals and the reality forsexual and reproductive health. Whenwe review the optimistic targets ofaccess to sexual and reproductivehealth by 2015, we dont need to panicbut we do need to put our feet in theaccelerator. The simplest way for us tospeed up the programme is byencouraging more women intogovernance and political action, Ms.Chadwick said.

Keynote Speech: Women are the

primary agents of child welfare,Ms. Valerie De Fillipo, IPPF Director of

External Affairs (London)

Ms. Valerie De Fillipo gave the keynotespeech on gender equality in Asia andthe Pacific. She said women traditionallyfaced vulnerability, risk and responsibilityas they disproportionately suffer theburden of poverty. They are the primaryagents of child welfare in mostsocieties, often carry the burden ofsustaining their families economicallyand play a significant role in themanagement of natural resources.However, they are also victims ofwidespread and persistentdiscrimination. They also put their livesat risk every time they become pregnantand they are increasingly susceptible toHIV/AIDS, Ms. De Fillipo said. She noted that gender equalitydevelopment in Asia and the Pacific wasbroad but inconsistent. It is important tonote that there has been a very broadprogress across Asia and the Pacific

Ms. Steve Chadwick

From L. to R.: Ms. Valerie De Fillipo, IPPF Director of External Affairs (London); and Dr.Sang Guowei, MP (China) and AFPPD Vice-Chairperson

There has been a very broad progress across Asia and

the Pacific region in areas such as expanding girls edu-cation and increasing womens empowerment.Ms. Valerie De Fillipo


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region in areas such as expanding girlseducation and increasing womensempowerment, including the number ofwomen coming into positions of politicaland economic authority. However, thereis still work to be done and somecountries are falling behind theirneighbors. For example, in many other

regions, little progress has been madein reducing maternal mortality ratiosmostly because emergency obstetricalcare is still not available outside majorurban centers, she said.

Ms. De Fillipo also describedchallenges for gender equalitydevelopment in the region such asgender-based violence, limited accessto sexual and reproductive healthservices and unsafe abortion. Shestressed that Asia and the Pacific hadnot made significant inroads to reducematernal mortality and the spread of HIV/AIDS. However, the policy frameworksin the region had changed to reflect theICPD agenda, particularly in womenseducation, gender equality and legalreform. Country commitments need tobe enacted and efforts doubled to makegender equality, and universal accessto sexual and reproductive healthservices a reality, she added.

The session was chaired by Dr. SangGuowei, MP (China) and AFPPD Vice-Chairperson.

Panel Discussion: Governance in theNational Level Successes and

Barriers Across the Region

Dr. Myoung Ock Ahn, MP (SouthKorea); Ms. Claire Moore, Senator(Australia); Hon. Nanaia Mahuta, Minister

of Customs, Minister of Youth Affairs,and Associate Minister for Environmentand Local Government (New Zealand);and Ms. Nurlygaim Joldasbayeva,Senator (Kazakhstan); shared theexperiences from their own countries ongender-responsive governance in apanel discussion on Governance at the

National Level Successes andBarriers Across the Region.

Concurrent workshops: Strategies forencouraging women into governance

Hon. Lianne Dalziel spoke on thestrategies for encouraging women intogovernance.

The ministers and parliamentarians joined one of the three concurrentworkshops on gender analysis,womens action plan, and census ofwomens participation in governanceand political life; and later reported andexchanged the results from eachworkshop in a plenary discussion.

Capacity building for governance in the

community level

Ms. Ria Earp, Deputy Director-General, Maori Health, Ministry of Health(New Zealand), spoke on capacitybuilding for gender governance in thecommunity level. She cited the NewZealand experience in governance at thecommunity level for the health careservices of the Maori community.

Globalization and economic

empowerment of women in Asia and

the Pacific

Dr. Meutia Hatta Swasono, Ministerof Women Empowerment (Indonesia),

said that women hadan important role in theera of globalization.The challenges thatwomen are facingtoday in most Asia andthe Pacific countriesremain complex:poverty, unemployment,low level of education,low status of health andlack of social protection.In Indonesia, thechallenges becomesmore difficult andcomplex on the accountof the increasing

prevalence of violence and abuse,including trafficking, she said.

We should recognize thecontributions of women, either asworkers in the informal sector, asentrepreneurs, as investors or as unpaidworkers to the economies of Asia andthe Pacific. Women today are active in

the labor force. In Indonesia, forexample, around 60 percent of themicro-businesses are managed bywomen and 76 percent of the migrantworkers are women. They have asignificant potential capacity to contributeto the economic development. Thispotential contribution of women toeducation, to quality of life and industrialprogress, and to Asias export boom hasscientifically and empirically beenrecognized, Dr. Swasono added.

Gender-sensitive budgeting

Rep. Loretta Ann P. Rosales, ThePhilippines, said that gender-responsive budgeting, as well asauditing, should be a mainstreampractice in the entire budgeting andevaluation process. Rep. Rosales saidthat the Philippines had already achievedlaudable gains on gender-responsivegovernance. The willingness of thegovernment to allocate resources ongender and development is a sign thatthe country has reached a certain levelof appreciation on the importance of the

issue. However, in spite of these andthe strong lobbying sector for genderequality and equity, a fullinstitutionalization of integration ofgender in development plans andappraisals is still a far reach. Indeed,getting there might take long. What mustbe ensured is that the call to therealization of gender-responsivegovernance continues and becomeslouder as we go on, she said.

Concurrent workshops: Populationand development agenda Some

current policy issues

The ministers and parliamentarians joined the second round of the fiveconcurrent workshops on current policyissues in population and development,namely: sex selection and legislation;gender governance; sexual andreproductive health, and rights; HIV/AIDS, trafficking, early marriage, andadolescent sexual and reproductivehealth; and male parliamentarians rolein achieving gender equality. Theworkshops were followed by a plenary

session in which the ministers andparliamentarians discussed about theresults from each workshop.

Women have important roles in the era of glo-

balization, however, the challenges that womenare facing today remain complex. Dr. Meutia Hatta Swasono

From L. to R.: Mrs. Hj. Aisyah Hamid Baidlowi, MP (Indonesia), IFPPD Chair and AFPPDVice-Chairperson; Prof. Dr. Meutia Hatta Swasono, Minister of Womens Empowerment(Indonesia); Ms. Angel in Sondakh, MP (Indonesia); and Mr. H. Ruz Hanul Ulum, MP(Indonesia)


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Promoting an integrated approach to

prevent violence against womenHon. Ruth Dyson, Minister of Labour,

ACC, Senior Citizens, Disability Issues,Social Development and Employment(New Zealand), spoke on promoting anintegrated approach to prevent violence

against women. In league witheconomic transformation and nationalidentity, family is one of the three corethemes of the New Zealandgovernments commitment to continuethe countrys transformation to a high-value, knowledge-based economy, shesaid.

She urged the governments to comeup with an integrated approach toprevent violence against women. Thereis no disagreement here today thatwomen and family violence are bad we share a common goal. Violence hasa devastating and long-term effects onfamilies and communities, Hon. Dysonadded.

NZAIDs gender policy and role inpromoting gender equality and

sustainable development

In his message for the conference,Rt. Hon. Winston Peters, Minister ofForeign Affairs and Racing, AssociateMinister for Senior Citizens, and Leaderof New Zealand First (New Zealand),spoke on the gender policy of New

Zealands International Aid andDevelopment Agency (NZAID), and itsrole in promoting gender equality andsustainable development. In 2005 and2006, NZAID had been updating itsgender policy to reflect the agencysmandate of poverty elimination, coregeographical focus on the Pacific; theglobal initiative to improve aideffectiveness, recent internationalcommitments including the MDGs; andthe evolving international genderequality practice. It is working actively toenhance gender equality and womensrepresentation in governance in thenational and regional levels in thePacific.

Message from Hon. MargaretWilson, Speaker of the New Zealand

Parliament

Due to the terrible weather, Hon.Margaret Wilson could not come todeliver a speech in the conference. Inher statement, she said, Much progresshave been made in this region but westill have much to do to advance the

goals of equality, human rights,development and peace.

She also urged the ministers andparliamentarians to take up the

challenges onpopulation andd e v e l o p m e n t .Certainly, it is soencouraging to seewomen here from somany parts of the Asia-Pacific region whohave broken throughmany barriers, andwho, throughinitiatives such as thismeeting, can sharetheir leadership andexperience, and buildstrong and strategicpartnerships that will ultimately help thepeople who have elected them, Hon.Wilson said.

New Zealand has strong commitment

to population and development,

Rt. Hon. Helen Clark, the PrimeMinister of New Zealand

Rt. Hon. Helen Clark provided a

closing address. She highlighted theneed for access to reproductive healthrights and warned of the negativeconsequences brought by the absenceof such access. The consequences arelong-term population and reproductivehealth problems such as genderinequality, high rates of maternalmortality and morbidity, and of HIV/AIDS,as well as delayed social and economicdevelopment, she said.

New Zealand had a strongcommitment to internationalframeworks on population anddevelopment. This partnership enablesus to honor the commitment made atCairo in 1994 by placing a high priorityon the right to sexual and reproductivehealth services- to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS, education for all, and genderequality, Rt. Hon. Clark said, adding that,New Zealand remains a strongsupporter of the United NationsPopulation Fund and the InternationalPlanned Parenthood Federation. We areproviding an increasing amount ofresources to both of these international

population agencies (in 2005 over NZ$6million to UNFPA and NZ$1.3 million toIPPF).

Attitude and cultural changes to foster

womens participation are needed,

Mr. Sultan Aziz, Director, Asia and the

Pacific Division, UNFPA

In his message presented by Mr.Najib Assifi, UNFPA Representative andCST Director, UNFPA Sub-regionalOffice (Fiji); Mr. Sultan Aziz, Asia-PacificDivision Director, UNFPA, stressed that

womens participation in the decision-making process in every level would bethe key to achieve gender equality andgood governance.

Mr. Aziz also called upon maleparliamentarians to tackle these issuesand underscored some possiblechanges in the basic legislation and themindset of the entire society. Womenparliamentarians alone cannot makethe systemic changes necessary toempower women, they need the supportof male colleagues. Constitutionalchange is necessary to enshrinewomens equality and to have a strategicplan for gender mainstreamingthroughout the governments and publicinstitutions, he said.

He added, Legislation alone is notenough. There is a need for attitudinaland cultural change throughout thesociety in general to foster theparticipation of women in all aspects ofeconomic, social and political life.Education and training of women arekey to their empowerment. Womenparliamentarians in developed

countries must be educated on thereality of the lives of the women indeveloping countries.

Womens participation in the decision-making process in every level would be thekey in achieving gender equality and goodgovernance.

Mr. Sultan Aziz

Right: Mr. Najib Assifi, UNFPA Representative and CST Director, UNFPA Sub-RegionalOffice (Fiji), is addressing the conference on behalf of Mr. Sultan Aziz, Asia-Pacific DivisionDirector, UNFPA


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4th Asian-Pacific Women Parliamentarians and Ministers ConferencePlan of Action

The ministers and parliamentariansat the 4th Asian-Pacific Women Parlia-mentarians and Ministers Conferenceadopted the Plan of Action that featuresthe following commitment.

Being profoundly concerned bythese issues, and building on the reso-lutions/discussions of the three previousAFPPD conferences for women parlia-mentarians; we commit individually andcollectively to report back to our parlia-mentary colleagues on the issues of this

meeting, and to raise awareness andshow leadership of womens issues, in-cluding the need for increased genderresponsiveness in our countries by ad-vocating for the development andresourcing of evidence-based strategiesand governance; through strategies suchas:

Improved access to current sex-dis-aggregated data and research related towomen.

Setting of benchmarks by whichprogress can be measured, includingMDG indicators and targets.

Use of gender analysis in planning ofthe policies, legislation and budgets, andadequate resourcing of the strategies toimprove womens health, safety and

wellbeing, education, and development.

Development of specific cross-gov-ernment womens action plans in orderto maximize womens social and eco-nomic participation.

Increased opportunities for leadershipand representation of women on deci-sion-making bodies in the government,business and community.

Paying significant attention to theneeds and participation of rural women.

Involving young people in the educa-

tion of sexual and reproductive health,social and economic participation anddecision-making, and in supportingyoung women in political and public life.

Developing a womens parliamentarycaucus or strengthening its role wherethey already exist.

Developing a resourced cross-partyparliamentarians group for populationand development to initiate change andmonitor progress wherever they do notexist.

Implementing comprehensive health,education, and information strategies re-

lated to sexual and reproductive health;including HIV/AIDS and other issuessuch as drug use, in order to promotehealth, wellbeing and self-esteem.

Implementation of the UN conventionand protocols, and anti-trafficking laws;including strengthening regional coop-eration particularly in relation to repatria-tion and rehabilitation of victims.

Proactive policies to prevent sex se-lection, child marriage, human trafficking,fake marriage and forced labor.

Ensuring donor country decisions are:informed by the commitments in this planof action, by the views of women in theparliaments of the recipient countries, andharmonized and coordinated to ensure

fair and equitable delivery of aid.Analysis of the impact of globalizationon women, international trade rules andpolicy in particular.

We also call upon AFPPD to supportus in this work through:

Collection and distribution of research,data and practical tools related towomens health, wellbeing and participa-tion in governance.

Development of a political mentoringscheme for women in governance.

Continued support for women parlia-

mentarians and continuation of parliamen-tarians groups for population and devel-opment.

Commitment

Recognizing the cultural, religious, socialand economic diversity of our unique

region; and also our shared commitmentto the elimination of poverty and theachievement of the MillenniumDevelopment Goals; and the need forpolitical will and leadership. We, theparliamentarians and ministers from 30countries in Asia and the Pacific, call onall parliamentarians in our region to:

Commit to our responsibility asrepresentatives of the people to showleadership, and build strong and strategicpartnerships; including those with NGOsand civil society, and parliamentarians

across the region.

Recognizethe right to health, and thatwomen and girls in the region bear adisproportionate burden of many of theregions health and development issues;including the increasing impact in theregion of the HIV/AIDS pandemic,maternal mortality, child marriage, andlack of equitable access to education,social and economic development

initiatives.

Recognizethat the inclusion of womenin all levels of governance is the key toaddress these issues: equality,sustainable and equitable development,and peace and security for everybody.

Recognizethat the role of women isessential in decision-making in all levelsof the society, as their ability to makedecisions about their individual lives, andin particular, their sexual andreproductive health in order to enablethem to make real changes in their livesand the lives of future generations.

Recognizethe importance of educatingand encouraging men to be aware ofthe issues of power imbalances betweenmen and women in all levels of decision-making, and also recognize that menssupport for womens participation ingovernance and decision-making isessential in all levels of individual andnational development.

Recognizethat the epidemic levels ofviolence against women impact on every

aspect of their lives and those of theirchildren, and this must be urgentlyaddressed in both national and individuallevels, in partnership with men.

Recognizethat the governance in nationaland local levels should address manybarriers to womens health, well-being andfull participation both within the family andthe society, and should consequentlyconsider the gender impact of all policiesand strategies on both women and men,and on the issues critically important tothis region.

Recognizethat culture, history andtradition, and gender roles shape our livesand may support or inhibit womensempowerment, noting that social andeconomic empowerment of women doesnot mean disempowerment of men, butthat both are strong different but equal and able to participate.

Preamble


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Parliamentarians from Thailand. L. to R.: Ms. Maleerat Kaewka, Senator; and Dr. MalineeSukavejworakit, Senator and AFPPD Secretary-General

Parliamentarians from Tajikistan

Parliamentarians and ministers at the Parliament of New Zealand

From L. to R.: Dr. Myoung Ock Ahn, MP (South Korea); Hon. Nanaia Mahuta, Minister ofCustoms, Minister of Youth Affairs, and Associate Minister for Environment and LocalGovernment (New Zealand) ; and Hon. Fiame Naomi Mata'afa, MP (Samoa), during thepanel discussion on "Governance at the National Level Successes and Barriers Acrossthe Region".

From L. to R.: Sen. Lyn Allison, Australia; Sen. Claire Moore; Australia, and Sen. NurlygaimJoldasbayeva, Kazakhstan, during the panel discussion on "Governance at the National Level

Successes and Barriers Across the Region".

Photo Gallery

From L. to R.: Mrs. Effat Shariati Kohbanani, MP (Iran); and Mrs. Mrs. Fatemeh Ajorloo ,

MP (Iran)

Parliamentarians from Cambodia. L. to R.: Mrs. Ho Naun, MP; Princess Sisiwath Santa,MP; and Mrs. You Ay, Secretary of State, Ministry of Womens Affairs

Parliamentarians from Chiina. L. to R. : Dr. Sang Guowei, MP and AFPPD Vice-Chairperson; Mrs. Pang Lijuan, MP; Mrs. Fang Xin, MP; and Mrs. Sen Song,Parliamentary Official


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World Population Day with a Focus on Young People2006 World Population Day

The United Nations marked the 2006World Population Day on July 11, 2006by focusing on the worlds three billionyoung people, calling for narrowing thegap between the rich and the poor. Dr.Thoraya Obaid, United NationsPopulation Fund (UNFPA) ExecutiveDirector, said millions of young peoplewere threatened by poverty, illiteracy,risks of pregnancy and childbirth, andHIV/AIDS. Today, more than 500 million

people aged 15 to 24 live on less than$2 per day; 96 million young women indeveloping countries do not know howto read or write; and 14 millionadolescent girls aged 15 to 19 becomemothers every year. Every day, 6,000young people are newly infected withHIV. These challenges lie in the heart ofthe goals set by the world leaders toreduce poverty, and improve health and

Existing legislative process and the role ofthe Lao National Assembly in fostering theNational Socio-Economic DevelopmentPlan (NSEDP) 2006-2010, and theimplementation of the MillenniumDevelopment Goals (MDGs) werediscussed in Vientiane, Laos on June 5-7, 2006 in a pre-session workshop for theLaotian National Assembly members.

The legislative process discussed on thefirst day of the workshop shed light on thelegislative-executive relations and on therepresentative roles of the Members of theAssembly (MAs), and also pinpointed theneed of a strong legislature for governmentstability.

During the panel presentations anddiscussions on the second day of theworkshop, prominent speakersdiscussed about Millennium Declarationand MDGs, and the role of theparliamentarians in achieving the MDGs.They also talked about the 6th NationalPlan for the Lao PDR, and on the sectorissues for the achievement of MDGs andimplementation of the education sector ofthe National Plan. Among the speakerswere Ms. Olivia Yambi, UN ResidentCoordinator; Mr. Visieth Svengsuksa of theLao National Assembly; Hon. KabirHashim, MP (Sri Lanka); H.E. Dr. LienThikeo, Vice-President of the Committeefor Planning and Investment (CPI); and Ms.

Setsuko Yamazaki, UNDP ResidentRepresentative.

The final day of the workshop discussedabout the health sector of the NationalPlan, population and development policy,and data and monitoring. Finally, the pre-session workshop concluded withadvocating the role of the project onstrengthening the Lao National Assembly.On the occasion, H.E. Dr. SaysomphonePhomvihane, Chair of the Foreign AffairsCommittee and the Lao Association ofParliamentarians on Population andDevelopment (LAPPD) made the closingremarks.

Health, Population, and Development Policy in Laos

Pre-session Parliamentary Review Workshop

well-being. It isclear that theM i l l e n n i u m

Deve lopmentGoals will neverbe met unlessyoung people areactively involve inpolicy-makinga n dprogramming;that their voicesare heard, theirneeds are metand their humanrights arerespected, she

added.

National parliamentary committees onpopulation and development, and UNFPAcountry offices across Asia and the Pacificheld activities to mark the significance ofpopulation and development policy on thatday.

Some highlights:

Indonesia Indonesian Forum ofParliamentarians on Population and

Development (IFPPD), in cooperation withIFPPD West Kalimantan and UNFPA, helda seminar to celeberate the WorldPopulation Day with the theme The Spiritof ICPD Plan of Action into RegionalRegulation on Population in WestKalimantan Province, Indonesia. Dr.Siswanto Agus Wilopo, a well-known ICPDexpert, discussed to 15 West Kalimantanparliamentarians about the importance of

the regional regulation and he ICPDProgramme of Action.

New Zealand Around 200 peopleattended the MAKEPOVERTYHISTORYevent held at the Parliament in Wellingtonto mark the World Population Day in NewZealand. Hosted by Ms. Steve Chadwick,MP, NZPPD Chair and AFPPD StandingCommittee on Women Chair, the eventwas an opportunity for the people to hearMr. Simon Townsley, an internationallyacclaimed photographer, to discuss hisrecent work and to tell heart-wrenchingpersonal stories about people living inpoverty. The event was organized by theNZPPD Secretariat, the FPAID and the

Wellington Photographic Society.

Thailand UNFPA collaborated with theDepartment of Health, the Ministry of PublicHealth and the College of Public Health,Chulalongkorn University to mark the 2006World Population Day with a publicmeeting entitled, Being Young Is Tough.The July 12 event, which took place at theChulalongkorn University in Bangkok,highlighted young peoples energy, ideasand potential to make a difference. Youthrepresentatives from various backgrounds

participated in a wide-ranging paneldiscussion; covering topics such ascasual sex, unwanted pregnancy andabortion, and poverty. Panelists fromdifferent parts of the country spoke aboutgender inequality in traditional ethnicsocieties, impact of violence on youth, youthmigration and bias faced by the youth fromthe communities known for drug abuse.

World Population Day in Bangkok, Thailand


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AFPPD in collaboration with the NationalCommittee of KyrgyzstanParliamentarians on Population andDevelopment, the UNFPA, and theGovernment of Japan organized theCentral Asian Parliamentarians Meetingon Adolescent Reproductive and SexualHealth (ARSH) in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstanon June 27-28, 2006. The conferencewas aimed in highlighting youth-relatedhealth issues such as reproductivehealth, sexual health, HIV/AIDS, gender

equality and violence against women.Parliamentarians from Belarus,Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia,Tajikistan and Thailand attended themeeting.

Young people are our prominent future

We must take care of our young peopleas they are the builders of our prominentfuture, Hon. Felix Kulov, Prime Ministerof Kyrgyzstan, stressed during hiswelcome address.

He noted that the well-being of any nation

depended on how well the populationdevelopment issues were dealt in thecountry. As one scientist said, a nationwith a population of 5 million people isa very fragile nation. Accordingly, countryprogrammes and strategic documentsagainst HIV/AIDS have been formulatedand actively implemented to solve thereproductive health issues of theadolescents in Kyrgyzstan, he said.

Legislative reform is an answer

Mr. Osmanbek Artykbaev, MP and

Chairman of the National Committee ofKyrgyzstan Parliamentarians onPopulation and Development, in hiswelcome address, said that the idea ofthe meeting was to define the basic

problems of the young people of theCentral Asian region; to join efforts ofthe members of the parliament toimprove public health services, andpopulation and development issues;and to implement the rights of the youngpeople to sexual and reproductivehealth by means of reforming thelegislation.

Solidarity as a key to resolve youth

health issues

Hon. Marat Sultavov, Speaker of theParliament of Kyrgyzstan, in his openingspeech, underlined the role of theparliamentarians in solving population-related problems and noted that theseissues should be resolved in solidaritywith all the parliamentarians of theregion. The National Committee ofKyrgyzstan Parliamentarians onPopulation and Development has beenvery active in approaching sexual andreproductive health problems of theyoung people, HIV/AIDS, and gender

equality, he said.

He also underlined the essential role ofthe AFPPD in promoting activitiesrelated to poverty alleviation, reproductive

health, gender equality and violenceagainst women in the Asia Pacificregion.

Mobilization of the Central Asian

parliamentarians is a high priority

Dr. Malinee Sukavejworakit, Senator(Thailand) and Secretary General ofAFPPD, stressed the importance ofreproductive health issues in CentralAsia. I am also happy to note that theCentral Asian countries responded verywell and have been quite active, shesaid.

Moreover, AFPPDs involvement hadhelped in promoting ICPD issues

among parliamentarians. Further workwould be realized to mobilize theparliamentarians of the region byconducting person-to-person advocacyon population-related issues; meetingmembers of the parliament individuallyand discussing population-relatedissues on topics such as reproductiveand sexual health, violence againstwomen, and HIV/AIDS. In Central Asia,with the support from UNFPA regionaland country offices, we have been ableto mobilize a good number of

parliamentarians and now they arechampions of this cause, Dr.Sukavejworakit added.

Needs of the youth should come first

Mr. Khaled Philby, Regional Director ofUNFPA for Central Asia, pointed out that

primary attention should be given to theneeds of the young people in solvingreproductive health and HIV/AIDSproblems. He also noted that themeeting was also a landmark event asit represented the results of a dedicatedand effective partnership betweenparliamentarians and the UNFPA inunderstanding the needs and giving avoice to the young generations. Thismeeting will bring better focus to theneeds of the young people andencourage their participation in thedecision making of their reproductiveand sexual health, he underlined.

He stressed that the meeting alsotackled the issues related to HIV/AIDS

Central Asian Regional Parliamentarians Meeting on AdolescentReproductive and Sexual Health

From L. to R.: Mr. Khaled Philby, Regional Director of UNFPA for Central Asia; Hon. Marat Sultavov, Speaker of the Parliament ofKyrgyzstan; Hon. Felix Kulov, Prime Minister of Kyrgyzstan; Dr. Malinee Sukavejworakit, Senator (Thailand) and Secretary-Generalof AFPPD; and Mr. Osmanbek Artykbaev, MP and Chairman of the National Committee of Kyrgyzstan Parliamentarians on Populationand Development

Person-to-person advocacyto mobilize parliamentariansof this region

Dr. Malinee Sukavejworakit

Dr. Malinee Sukavejworakit and Mr. Osmanbek Artykbaev


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and their impact on the youngpopulation. Moreover, it also helped ingiving more voices to the girls and theyoung women for the expression of theirneeds and rights. We will work togetherover these two days and share ourexperiences and expectations. UNFPA,parliamentarians, government officials,international organizations and NGOswill put forward their best practices andlessons learned. In this meeting, we willalso give a chance to the young people

to raise their voices and help us findsolutions to their problems, heconcluded.

Seeking the rights of the adolescents

Mr. Maripov Asamiddin Maripovich, ViceChairman of the Committee on SocialIssues of the Kyrgyzstan Parliament,spoke on the needs of the youth and theadolescents in the field of reproductiveand sexual health in the first session.He stressed that out of all human rightsrecognized by the global community,gender equality, right to education and

right to health were especially acute tothe young generation. Realization ofthe right to health requires access toadequate and corresponding-to-the-ageopportunity, circumstances, information,and services in the sphere of sexual andreproductive health, he said.

We are the partners of the youth and

the adults

Ms. Salieva Saltanat, Member of theYouth Committee of International FamilyPlanning Association (YCIFPA) of

Kyrgyzstan, stressed the importance oftodays adolescence issues. Riskbehavior, unwanted pregnancies, drugabuse, poor nutrition, violence and legalexposure, these are the realities of the

current adolescent and youth issues,she said.

Young people do not seek health care

Ms. Kangeldieva Aigul, Director of theKyrgyz Scientific Center of HumanReproduction (KCOHR) of Kyrgyzstan,spoke on the growing trend in whichyoung people tended not to seekmedical advice from health careprofessionals.

Legal basis exists to deal with health

problems

Speaking in the second session on thefuture direction of the participation ofyoung people in the decision-makingprocess on reproductive and sexualhealth was led by Mr. Beksultan S.Tutkushev, Senator (Kazakhstan) andDeputy Secretary-General of AFPPD; Mr.Mamyrov Erkinbek, State-Secretary of theMinistry of Justice of Kyrgyzstan, shedlight on the existing legal basis to dealwith health problems. He emphasizedthe existing laws in the Family Code andLabor Code of Kyrgyzstan.

Youth and modern life

Dr. Kerimova Natalia, Professor ofObstetrics, Gynecology and PerinatologyAssociation of Kyrgyzstan, spoke on theimpacts of the modern conditions onreproductive health of the adolescents.She noted that starting from 2001, thenumber of people living with HIV/AIDS

had been gradually increasing and todate, about 4,000 people were living withthe virus. Fifty-two percent of thesepeople are adolescents among 15-21years of age. Heroin addiction is another

issue that inflicts many young people,women and children, she said.

Adolescent health issues under

USAID strategy consideration

Dr. Damira Bibosunova, from the USAID/CAR of Kyrgyzstan, talked about the

USAID strategy to improve legislative,regulatory and policy framework, and toimprove the health care of thepopulation; including infectiousdiseases, maternal and child health,population involvement, and rational useof resources.

It is time to educate the youth

In the session on HIV/AIDS, youth andadolescents which was led by Mr.Isachkin, MP (Belarus); Mr. NiazovShailobek, Minister of the Public Healthof Kyrgyzstan, spoke on the significance

of HIV/AIDS education of the youth. Hesaid that as in other countries, amongdifferent infectious diseases such asacute intestinal infection, tuberculosis,and hepatitis; sexually transmitteddiseases were of significant weight inKyrgyzstan.

Struggle against narcotics and HIV/

AIDS

Mr. Isakov Timur, Head of the ServiceDepartment, Drugs Control Agency ofKyrgyzstan, said that we needed a

general plan for the struggle againstnarcotics and HIV/AIDS. He describedthe war against social and biologicalepidemics as follows, The present waris different. Two components are unitedby a regular syringe and this coupling issaid to be mortally strong.

Action plan towards promoting gender

equality in Tajikistan

In the session on gender equality andexpansion of opportunities of girls andwomen which was moderated by Mr.Tekebaev Omurbek, Member of the

National Committee ofParliamentarians on Population andDevelopment of Kyrgyzstan; Mr. SalimovOlim, Vice Chairman of the Committeeon International Affairs, PublicOrganizations and Information ofTajikistan, spoke on the action plantowards promoting gender equality inTajikistan.

Gender equality issues on agenda

Ms. Niazova Anara, a specialRepresentative of the President of

Kyrgyzstan on Gender Development,pointed out that special emphasis wasrequired on the issues of women rightsprotection and on achieving internationallegal standards in the area.

Primary attention should be given to the needsof the young people in solving reproductivehealth and HIV/AIDS problems.

Mr. Khaled Philby

Mr. Khaled Philby

Mr. Beksultan S. Tutkushev, Senator (Kazakhstan) and DeputySecretary-General of AFPPD


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Parliamentarians and other partners ofthe Global Fund to Fight AIDS,Tuberculosis and Malaria attended thesecond Global Fund Partnership Forumevent, held on July 1-3, 2006, in Durban,South Africa. The theme of thePartnership Forum 2006 wasOvercoming Challenges andCelebrating Success. After four yearsof operations, the Global Fund took timeto reflect on its progress by reaching outand consulting to the stakeholders,including those who were not part of its

governance structures and those whohad not received grants.

The Partnership Forum is a public forumfor supporting and improving theeffectiveness of the Global Fund. Itsfunction is to play a major role ininfluencing the vision of the Global Fund to be an effective global public-privatepartnership that makes a sustainableand significant contribution to thereduction of infection, illness and deathfrom AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.

The main discussions at thePartnership Forum focused on thearchitecture of the Global Fund;acceleration of grant performance;harmonization of grants with nationalpriorities and other developmentpartners; and sustainability of the GlobalFund model and its funding. Participantshad the opportunity to makerecommendations which would bepresented to the Global Fund Board atits meeting on November 2006. It washoped that these recommendations

would also inform and feed into thediscussions on the Global Fund strategy.

Four parliamentarians from AFPPD Prof. Tran Dong A, MP (Vietnam), Dr.Hakim Sorimuda Pohan, MP(Indonesia), Mr. Lambaa Sambuu, MP(Mongolia), and Dr. Ahn Myoung Ock, MP(South Korea) - participated in the forum.In 2004 the Global Fund held its firstPartnership Forum in Bangkok,Thailand. In their report, theparliamentarians emphasized the needfor regular feedbacks on the GlobalFunds actions to the parliament so thatthey could monitor the implementationof the programmes and provide allpossible supports.

Prof. Dr. Prasop Ratanakorn, a foundingmember and former AFPPD Secretary-General, was on an official visit to Japanfrom July 2-5, 2006. Dr. Ratanakorn,Secretary-General of the InternationalMedical Parliamentarians Organization

Parliamentarians Advocacy

Parliamentarians atthe Global Fund

Partnership Forum

Dr. Prasop Ratanakorn Visits Japan(IMPO) and Presidentof the General PremT i n s u l a n o n d aS t a t e s m a nF o u n d a t i o n(Thailand), also paidvisits to the followingMPs of Japan: Dr.Taro Nakayama,IMPO President; Mr.Yasuo Fukuda,AFPPD Chairman;Mr. Yoshio Yatsu,

former AFPPD Chairman; and Mr. ShinSakurai, also a former AFPPDChairman. He discussed about the 25th

anniversary of AFPPD and the futureprogrammes of the medicalparliamentarians.

From L. to R.: Dr. Taro Nakayama, MP (Japan); Dr. Prasop Ratanakorn, former AFPPD Secretary-General; and Mr. Yasuo Fukuda, MP (Japan) and AFPPD Chairman

The Associated Pressreported that theUnited States population is on the fastlane towards 300 million, with anincrease of 2.8 million each year.

The growth is producing headaches forAmericans who are fed up with trafficcongestion, sprawl and dwindlingnatural resources. This scenario isstarkly different from the populationdecline in other industrialized countries,which are on the verge of big populationlosses, such as Japan and those inEurope.

The US Census Bureau projects thatthe US population will hit 300 millionsometime in October and, by 2050, theUnited States is projected to have about420 million people. The number ofpeople have been doubling about every

half of a century, from 75 million in 1900to 150 million in 1950.

Europe and Japan are now facing apopulation problem that isunprecedented in human history -declining population over time with anincrease in the percentage of oldpeople, said Mr. Bill Butz, President ofthe Population Reference Bureau, aWashington think tank.

The U.S. is the fastest growingindustrialized nation in the world, addingabout 2.8 million people a year. Thats alittle less than one percent, but enoughto mitigate the kinds of problem face byJapan and many European countries.

A USA Today/Gallup Poll found that 39percent of adults think that US populationgrowth is a major problem and 57percent think that it will be a majorproblem in the future.

US About to Have 300 Million Americans-Adding 2.8 Million Each Year

In the article, Report on Laws andPolicies on Reproductive Health andRights, on page 10 of our November-December 2005 newsletter, we failedto state that the report was a jointcollaboration between the Center forReproductive Rights, the Asian-Pacific

Resource & Research Center forWomen (ARROW), and four other non-governmental organizations and

institutions based in the region thePopulation Research Institute atRenmin University in China, the Institutefor Social Studies and Action (ISSA) inthe Philippines, the Womens HealthAdvocacy Foundation (WHAF) inThailand, and the Research Center for

Gender, Family, and Development(CGFED) in Vietnam. Our apologies forany inconvenience caused by this error.

Erratum


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AFPPD, Phyathai Plaza, Suite 9-C,

Phyathai Road, Phyathai,

Bangkok, 10400, Thailand

Tel: (662) 219 2903 / 4

Fax: (662) 219 2905

E-mail: [email protected]

On the Web: www.afppd.org

The AFPPD Newsletter is a sequential publication.

Copies can be obtained by contacting:

Editor: Assistant Editor & Layout Design:

Shiv Khare Phermsak Lilakul & Philip Nalangan

ChairmanMr. Yasuo Fukuda, MP

JAPAN

Vice-ChairpersonsHon. Pita Nacuva, MP

Speaker of the Parliament

FIJI

Dr. Guowei Sang, MP

CHINA

Mr. Lakshman Singh, MP

INDIA

Mme. Nguyen Thi Hoai Thu, MP

VIETNAM

Mrs. Hj. Aisyah Hamid Baidlowi, MP

INDONESIA

TreasurerRep. Gilbert Cesar C. Remulla

THE PHILIPPINES

Chairwoman, the Standing

Committee on WomenMs. Steve Chadwick, MP

NEW ZEALAND

Chairman, the Standing

Committee on Food SecurityMr. Shin Sakurai, MP

JAPAN

Secretary-GeneralSen. Malinee Sukavejworakit

THAILAND

ExecutiveDirectorMr. Shiv Khare

THAILAND

Deputy Secretary-GeneralSen. Beksultan S. Tutkushev

KAZAKHSTAN

1212121212Parliamentarians Advocacy

IPPF Regional Council Discusses Working withParliamentarians

Opening Cerimony of the IPPF-ESEAOR Regional Council Meeting

The International Planned ParenthoodFederation, East & South-East Asia andOceania Region (IPPF-ESEAOR)Regional Council met on July 28-29,2006 in Chiang Mai, Thailand under thechairmanship of Prof. Ho Pak Chung,Regional Chairperson of IPPF-ESEAOR. It was addressed by Dr. StevenSinding, Director-General of IPPF, andDr. Metee Pongkittilah, Director ofReproductive Health Division,Department of Health, Ministry of PublicHealth (Thailand).

Ms. Sumie Ishii, Executive Director ofJapanese Organization for InternationalCooperation in Family Planning(JOICEF), spoke on networking,partnership and opportunities forresources mobilization. Mr. Shiv Khare,Executive Director of AFPPD, gave apresentation on ways and means to workwith parliamentarians. He also narratedthe background of IPPF and AFPPD

cooperation since the latters formation,and the advantages of having theparliamentarians on their sides. Headvised that the state-level and locallyelected officials, and the womenparliamentarians could be the targetsof their advocacy.

Mr. Tony Bates, Regional ProgrammeAdvisor of UNAIDS RST Asia Pacific,talked about how Technical SupportFacility (TSF) for South-East Asia and thePacific, which had been awarded toIPPF-ESEAOR by UNAIDS, would be

able to provide technical assistance togovernments and NGOs in the region.

The Regional Council also gave a veryemotional farewell to Dr. Steven Sindingwho will leave IPPF by September. Hewill be succeeded by Dr. Gill Greer, Asia-Pacific Alliance Chair and FamilyPlanning Association of New ZealandExecutive Director.

Nepalese PopulationCommittee Reconstructed

Nepal has a new ParliamentaryCommittee on Population and SocialAffairs under the chairmanship of Hon.

Birodh Khatiwada, MP. The committeehas 18 members, including onewoman member.

PGPD Roundtable on SRH inAustralias Aid

The Parliamentary Group on Populationand Development (PGPD) will holdroundtable sessions on Sexual andReproductive Health, and the MillenniumDevelopment Goals (MDGs) in the

Australian Aid Programme The WayForward on August 14, 2006 andSeptember 11, 2006. The purpose of thediscussions is to raise awarenesswithin the Australian Parliament abouthow improved sexual and reproductivehealth (SRH) underpins all of the MDGs.The outcome of the discussions is toidentify PGPDs future internationaladvocacy priorities. The sessions willinclude discussions on family planning,HIV/AIDS, maternal health,environmental degradation, adolescenthealth, mens SRH, micro-bicides, andSRH in conflict and emergency settings.

Upcoming AFPPD Event

Third International ParliamentariansConference on the Implementation ofthe ICPD Programme of Action, Novem-ber 21-22, Bangkok, Thailand

jun-jul 2006, empower women to achieve economic independence

Documents