HIGH BIRTH RATES HAMPER DEVELOPMENT IN POORER COUNTRIES, WARNS UN FORUM

Rapid population growth, fuelled by high fertility, presents a barrier to reducing poverty levels and reaching other internationally agreed development goals, experts attending the current session of the United Nations population body said today.

The meeting of the Commission on Population and Development, which began on Monday and concludes on Friday, is examining the extent to which population growth affects the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), globally agreed targets on reducing poverty and eliminating other social ills by 2015.

Although birth rates have been on the slide across the developing world since the 1970s, women in most of the least developed countries (LDCs) still have five children each on average, according to a policy brief presented by the Population Division of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA).

The lack of access to family planning and to modern methods of contraception is the major cause of this persistence in high fertility.

"When individuals and couples are given the possibility of deciding how many children they want to have, they usually opt for much lower numbers than they used to," Hania Zlotnik, Director of the Population Division, told the press at UN Headquarters in New York at a briefing focusing on the work of the Commission.

Ms. Zlotnik noted that giving people the information and means for reaching their reproductive goals – without any kind of interference or coercion – has significant implications for economic and social development.

Reducing population growth through cutting fertility rates, versus increasing mortality or restricting migration, is beneficial to the economy, as low fertility increases the number of people of working age per capita as well as output per capita, according to the Population Division brief.

Benefits to economic growth also occur as lowering fertility leads to an increase in the supply of female labour, particularly in urban areas in developing countries.

In addition, smaller family size allows for greater investment in the health and education of children in the longer term both from the family and government.
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REVISED UN ESTIMATES PUT WORLD POPULATION AT OVER 9 BILLION BY 2050

REVISED UN ESTIMATES PUT WORLD POPULATION AT OVER 9 BILLION BY 2050
New York, Mar 11 2009 6:00PM

The world's population will hit 7 billion early in 2012 and top 9 billion in 2050, with the majority of the increase taking place in developing countries, according to revised United Nations estimates released today.

"There have been no big changes for the recent estimates and we have not changed the assumptions for the future," Hania Zlotnik, Director of the Population Division at the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), told reporters in New York.

"We're still projecting that by 2050 the population of the world will be around 9.1 billion," she said, as she presented the 2008 Revision of the World Population Prospects.

The Revision also says that nine countries are expected to account for half of the world's projected increase from 2010 to 2050: India, Pakistan, Nigeria, Ethiopia, United States, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Tanzania, China and Bangladesh.

Ms. Zlotnik noted that current projections are based on the assumption that fertility is going to decline from the current global level of 2.5 children per woman to 2.1 children per woman from now until 2050.

The population of the 49 least developed countries (LDCs) is still the fastest growing in the world, at 2.3 per cent per year, according to a news release issued by the Population Division.

While the population of developing countries as a whole is projected to rise from 5.6 billion in 2009 to 7.9 billion in 2050, the population of more developed regions is expected to change minimally, passing from 1.23 billion to 1.28 billion.

The latter would have declined to 1.15 billion were it not for the projected net migration from developing to developed countries, which is expected to average 2.4 million persons annually from 2009 to 2050.

The UN adds that projected trends are contingent on fertility declines in developing countries. Without further reductions of fertility, the world population could increase by nearly twice as much as currently expected.

"It is going to be extremely important to continue funding and increasing the funding that has gone down for family planning because, if not, our projections on declining fertility are unlikely to be met," Ms. Zlotnik stated.

She added that the projected population trends also depend on achieving a major increase in the proportion of AIDS patients who get anti-retroviral therapy to treat the disease and on the success of efforts to control the further spread of HIV.

Among the other findings, she noted that most developing countries are unlikely to meet the goal of reducing under-five mortality by two-thirds by 2015, one of eight globally agreed targets set out in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
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BAN STRESSES ROLE OF PHILANTHROPY IN PREVENTING DEATHS FROM CHILD BIRTH, TROPICAL DISEASES

BAN STRESSES ROLE OF PHILANTHROPY IN PREVENTING DEATHS FROM CHILD BIRTH, TROPICAL DISEASES
New York, Feb 23 2009 6:00PM
The role of philanthropists and philanthropic organizations is crucial in tackling some avoidable health threats which kill millions of vulnerable people every year, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today.

"Health is a foundation for prosperity, stability and poverty reduction," Mr. Ban said at the opening of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) meeting aiming at advancing progress in strengthening maternal and girls' health, as well as fighting neglected tropical diseases.

Every year more than half a million women die from complications related to pregnancy and childbirth, almost all in developing countries, he told the over 400 participants, including leaders from the business, philanthropic, academic and global health community, including companies such as IKEA, Merrill Lynch and Toyota.

At a press conference ahead of the event, Marianne Barner, who heads IKEA's Social Initiative, announced a $48 million donation to the UN Children's Fund (http://www.unicef.org/UNICEF) programme in India.

She said the funds will impact the lives of 90 million people: 80 million children and young people and 10 million women.

"This brings our total investment in India to around $120 million and our total commitment to UNICEF globally to over $180 million until 2015," added Ms. Barner.

At today's ECOSOC meeting, Mr. Ban insisted that "we must put an end to these senseless deaths," adding that "women are engines of development and drivers of improved health."

Reducing the maternal mortality rate by two-thirds is among the Millennium Development Goals (http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/), a set of internationally agreed targets aiming to slash poverty, hunger and eradicate other social ills by 2015.

"Maternal health is a critical component of the well-being of any society. Yet among all the Millennium Development Goals, this is where there has been least progress," warned the Secretary-General.

He called for the UN family and national governments to coordinate their efforts, drawing from the expertise of foundations, research centres and academia, as well the innovative spirit of the private sector and the dynamism of civil society.

Mr. Ban pointed to the example set by cutting down the incidence of malaria in many countries as a way forward with other health issues.

"By making joint efforts and strengthening coordination, the malaria community has achieved real gains. In some African countries there has been a dramatic decline in the incidence of malaria," he said.

The Secretary-General also highlighted the challenge faced by neglected tropical diseases that "afflict about one billion of the world's poorest people. Yet these diseases are largely treatable."

Controlling these diseases offers a strategy for tackling many of the conditions that promote poverty, which is especially important at the present time of economic crisis, he said.

"The economic crisis is putting at risk the unprecedented rise in public and private funding we have witnessed in recent years. The food crisis and the threat posed by climate change have profound implications for people's health and well-being," he warned.

Mr. Ban challenged participants "to think radically about how we can take our efforts to the next level and forge a truly powerful global partnership for global health."

Former United States President Bill Clinton will be offering closing remarks to the Special Event on Philanthropy and Global Public Health Agenda, which was co-organized by the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) and the UN Office for Partnerships (UNOP).
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