Introduction

Africa (Sub-Saharan)

Arab States

Europe

Asia and the Pacific

Latin America and the Caribbean

Interregional Programmes

These masked women from lesotho are participants in a ceremony
celebrating female genital mutilation, a harmful tradicional practice
that is the target of UNFPA advocacy efforts in Africa

The ICPD+5 process, which evaluated efforts to implement the ICPD Programme of Action, was a major focus of UNFPA's work in 1998. To facilitate this review and appraisal process, the Fund provided technical and financial assistance to countries in all regions of the world. The results indicate that considerable progress has been achieved in most countries in the areas of reproductive health (including sexual health and family planning); adolescent reproductive health; women's empowerment; and partnerships with civil society (including with non-governmental organizations).

However, the review also found a number of obstacles hindering implementation efforts. Constraints included inadequate resources; lack of trained personnel; insufficient advocacy in support of population and reproductive health issues; inadequate quality of care; and minimal involvement of males.

During 1998, UNFPA continued to support programming in its priority areas, namely reproductive health, including sexual health and family planning; population and development strategies; and advocacy. Emphasis was placed on promoting reproductive rights; improving quality of care; training service providers; integrating population and development strategies; encouraging partnerships with the private sector and civil society; and building national capacity. In several countries, attention was focused on adolescent reproductive health and violence against women.

UNFPA continued its collaboration and coordination with other United Nations agencies and organizations, bilateral agencies and groups in civil society. The Fund also continued to be involved in the United Nations Development Group and participated in the United Nations Development Assistance Framework and the Common Country Assessment exercises.

In accordance with Executive Board decision 98/4, reporting on the following country and subregional programmes is included below under the relevant region: Algeria, China, Egypt, Nicaragua, the Pacific subregion and Paraguay.