UNFPA State of the World Population 2005:

To make poverty history...
 

BY MALINI Govinnage

GENDER equality and reproductive health are indispensable factors in reducing extreme poverty, states this year's State of the World Population Report of the United Nations Population Fund. The report was launched on October 12 in Colombo.

The report titled: The Promise of Equality: Gender Equity. Reproductive Health and Millennium Goals, emphasizing the world leaders' proclamation at last month's World Summit "Progress for women is Progress for all" explores the degree to which the Eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGS) planned out and forged by the nations of the world in the year 2000, to halve extreme poverty by 2015, have been fulfilled.

The MDGs constitute a promise by the world leaders to find solutions to many challenges before humanity.

They range from reducing extreme poverty to tackling the problem of maternal morality and reversing the HIV/AIDS epidemic by 2015.

While pinpointing a definite date for the achievement, the MDGs encompass one goal - promote gender equity and empower women.

Education, reproductive health, and economic opportunities for women are three strategic interventions necessary to the achievement of MDGs. Also of critical importance is eliminating violence against women.

Moreover, increased political participation and greater accountability for gender equity will help ensure these areas are given priority attention they deserve, the report emphasizes.

The Report further states:

Millions of young people can play a larger role in their country's development and create a better world for themselves and future generations. With almost 3 billion people under the age of 25, today's generation of young people are the largest in history, and the poorest countries have the highest percentages of young people. Of these more than 500 million youth live on less than $2 per day.

Addressing the launch gathering, Lubna Baqi, UNFPA Representative gave an overview of the report. She stated "World leaders will not make poverty history until they make gender discrimination history; we cannot make poverty history until we stop violence against women and girls."

Commenting on human rights framework for MDGs, Professor Savithri Gunasekera pointed out "the holistic vision of the report reinforces the Human Rights focus on development".

She further said: "While the concept of duties have eroded the concept of rights, human rights have become irrelevant to the largest number of humans today. And, she posed the question: Are rights anti women?

National response to gender concerns were presented by Swarna Sumanasekera, the Chairperson of National Committee on women, which monitors the implementation of Women's Charter.

How gender based violence incapacitates and impoverishes women and how it leads to the erosion of economic and social well-being of family and society was captured by Dr. Lakshman Senanayake, Consultant Obstetrician/Gyna ecologist who pointed out the sensationalizing gender issues in the media is not a solution but a vent for aggravating them.

A review of the impact of the tsunami on women was presented by Dr. Sepali Kottegoda Director of Women and Media Collective pointing out how it was women more than men who perished in the disaster and how it is more upon the surviving women than on men the burden of the disaster has fallen.