UN agency urges universal access to reproductive health

Published by rudy Date posted on April 13, 2011

MANILA, Philippines –  The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) urged yesterday member states and development partners to support access to reproductive health for women.

UNFPA executive director Babatunde Osotimehin asked member states and development partners to take quick action to facilitate universal access to reproductive health, the empowerment of women and poverty alleviation.

“We need to keep pushing to make universal access to reproductive health a reality,” Osotimehin said.

He said that investing in the health and rights of women and young people is not expenditure but rather an investment for the future.

One of the most urgent actions required is the closing of the $24-billion gap in funding required to finance programs to meet the needs of 1.8 billion young people and 1.8 billion women of childbearing age globally.

A recent report by the UN stated that family planning and demographic change alone reduced poverty by one-seventh in developing countries between 1960 and 2000, and could produce another one-seventh drop in poverty levels by 2015.

According to the report, if existing requirements for modern contraceptives were met, nearly 100,000 maternal deaths could be averted and unintended pregnancies could be cut by 71 percent.

Osotimehin said “some 215 million women in developing countries who want to plan and space their births do not have access to modern contraception.”

“Each year, neglect of sexual and reproductive health results in an estimated 80 million unintended pregnancies, 22 million unsafe abortions, and 358,000 deaths from maternal causes – including 47,000 deaths from unsafe abortion,” he added.

A member of the UN delegation that visited the Philippines early this month underscored the importance of the Reproductive Health (RH) bill, citing global evidence of improvement of countries after putting similar measures in place.

Nojibur Rahman, economic minister of the permanent mission of Bangladesh to the United Nations and team leader and spokesperson of the UN delegation that visited the Bicol region, said countries do better when families are managed well. –Pia Lee-Brago (The Philippine Star)

July 2025

Nutrition Month
“Give us much more than P50 increase
for proper nutrition!”

Invoke Article 33 of the ILO Constitution
against the military junta in Myanmar
to carry out the 2021 ILO Commission of Inquiry recommendations
against serious violations of
Forced Labour and Freedom of Association protocols.

Accept National Unity Government (NUG)
of Myanmar.  Reject Military!

#WearMask #WashHands #Distancing #TakePicturesVideosturesVideos

Time to support & empower survivors. Time to spark a global conversation. Time for #GenerationEquality to #orangetheworld!

July


3 July – International Day of Cooperatives
3 Ju
ly – International Plastic Bag Free Day
 
5 July –
World Youth Skills Day 
7 July – Global Forgiveness Day
11 July – World Population Day 
17 July – World Day for
International Justice
28 July – World Nature Conservation Day
30 July – World Day against Trafficking in Persons 


Monthly Observances:

Schools Safety Month

Nutrition Month
National Disaster Consciousness Month

Weekly Observances:

Week 2: Cultural Communities Week
Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise
Development Week
Week 3: National Science and
Technology Week
National Disability Prevention and
Rehabilitation Week
July 1-7:
National Culture Consciousness Week
July 13-19:
Philippines Business Week
Week ending last Saturday of July:
Arbor Week

 

Daily Observances:

First Saturday of July:
International Cooperative Day
in the Philippines

Categories

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.