Sustainable Development, Health & Population

Programme Vision

Parliamentarians are central to the full implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and the International Conference on Population and Development Programme of Action (ICPD PoA). They promote, review, and adopt reproductive health and rights legislation, including budget appropriations. Parliamentarians also approve policies formulated by government and endorse resolutions and statements in support of reproductive health and rights.

Parliamentarians are also critical to the successful implementation of Agenda 21, the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). They represent and voice the concerns of local constituencies in regards to adverse environmental, social and economic consequences derived from climate change. Parliamentarians, when fully briefed, can raise awareness about the impacts of climate change, especially to women. They draft, recommend and implement legislation and national policies to mitigate its negative effects and to improve adaptability to this phenomenon.

Programme Overview

Our work on the Sustainable Development, Health and Population Programme (SDHP) began more than 16 years ago, undertaking initiatives to inform parliamentarians and stimulate effective policymaking in two main areas:

Population and Reproductive Health
SDHP was active at the preparatory stages and has given follow-up to the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) producing the Cairo Programme of Action. The "Cairo Consensus," promotes reproductive health and rights, women's empowerment, and gender equality as central to population and development programmes. During the first decade of the new millennium, the Programme’s work focused on two key themes.

Environmental Health
SDHP's programme agenda was designed to advance 1992 Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, or the Rio Agenda. The Rio Agenda is principled on the integrity of the global environment and development system and calls for environmental preservation and restoration through preventing actions and practices that impede development and contribute to pollution, poverty, global warming, and poor health.

Priorities going forward

Based on our past achievements in these two areas, the SDHP programme has identified two priorities for its work going forward:

1. Improve gender equality, maternal health and access to reproductive rights
   • Advocate effectively for national implementation or advancement of CEDAW articles 10, 11, 12 and 16 devoted to gender equality and maternal health;
   • Support the full implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development;
     
   • Advance the Addis Ababa Statement of Commitment (2009) of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD);
   • Promote the Istanbul Declaration on Empowerment of Women and Human Security adopted at PGA’s 32nd Annual Forum;
     and
   • Promote the Tunis Plan of Action adopted at PGA's Parliamentary Workshop on Advancing Maternal and Reproductive Health and Gender Equality in member countries of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
     
2. Address the gender dimension in sustainable development
   • Promote Principle 20 of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development recognizing “Women have a vital role in environmental management and development. Their full participation is therefore essential to achieve sustainable development.”
   • Advocate effectively to introduce legislation focused on improving natural disaster preparedness and climate change adaptation, of which women and children are most vulnerable.
   • Advance initiatives that address and mitigate the social costs of women’s migration as a result of land degradation, desertification, water insecurity and scarcity, sea level rise, droughts/floods, land grabs, and deforestation.