ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — The African Regional Conference on Population & Development provides a unique opportunity to build on successes and lessons learned, and to position the continent to achieve its transformation agenda. This was said by UNFPA Deputy Executive Director Anne-Birgitte Albrectsen on behalf of Executive Director Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin at the opening session of the experts meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on 30 September.
“The ICPD beyond 2014 global survey, which was completed by 52 of 54 countries in the region, shows an overwhelming number of governments with strong commitment to the eradication of poverty; creating employment opportunities for youth; ensuring rights and access to sexual and reproductive health services, including HIV prevention for young people; eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV; increasing women’s access to comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services; and promoting environmental resource management,” she said.
“Such commitments explain the dramatic reduction of maternal, infant and child mortality across the region since 1994 as well as the control of the spread of HIV in almost all countries within the region.”
She said that Africa’s growing civil society of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), youth groups, institutions and ordinary people – whose passion, decisions and sacrifices had helped to educate girls, empower young people and break the deadening weight of harmful practices – had contributed to Africa’s remarkable progress in narrowing the gender gap in education, and the increasing number of women in parliament and in national office.
However, despite the gains and tremendous progress on the continent since 1994, the region faces serious challenges, she said. Read the full speech
