7-9 December: The Economic Commission for Europe
(ECE) and UNFPA met in Budapest, Hungary, to review the ICPD Programme of Action. The
report of the meeting, its conclusions, national reports made available at the regional
ICPD+5 meeting and other information are available on the ECE Population Activities Unit
web site at: http://www.unece.org/ead/pau/rpm/.
For a listing of other recent meetings related to ICPD+5
activities, please refer to earlier issues of the News Bulletin which are posted at the
UNFPA website at http://www.unfpa.org/ICPD/ICPD.HTM,
or are available by request to dayal@unfpa.org.
An international forum for the operational review and
appraisal of the implementation of the Programme of Action, organized by UNFPA in
collaboration with the Government of The Netherlands, will take place in The Hague on 8-12
February 1999. The Hague Forum will be held at the Netherlands Congress Centre (NCC),
Churchillplein 10, 2508 EA The Hague, The Netherlands (Tel:(31) 70 306-6366; Fax: (31) 70
306-6443). Registration for the Forum will take place at the NCC on 7 February 1999, from
1-6PM. Registration and hotel registration forms (available through UNFPA Field Offices
and Headquarters), to be completed by all official country participants to The Hague
Forum, were due to Expo & Hoc, b.v., (Fax: (31) 70 427-2770) by 15 December 1998, to
ensure hotel accommodation and entry to the Forum. A copy of the registration and hotel
reservation form should be faxed to Joyce Bratich-Cherif, The Hague Forum Secretariat,
IERD, at 212-297-4918 or 212-557-6416. Late forms should be faxed immediately to Expo
& Hoc. Completion and submission of the form will serve as the basis for the issuance
of conference badges that will permit entry to the Forum premises.
Provisional Annotated Agenda (subject to approval by the Bureau and Forum
participants):
1. Inaugural ceremony: The inaugural session will be addressed by a
high-level representative of the Government of the Netherlands, the Executive Director of
UNFPA, and other distinguished guests.
2. Election of Forum President: The inaugural session of the Forum
will elect its President and Chair.
3. Organizational and Procedural Matters: Adoption of the Rules
of Procedure: The Rules of Procedure prepared by UNFPA, serving as the Forum
Secretariat, will be submitted to the Forum for adoption. Election of other officers:Thirteen
Vice-Presidents and one Rapporteur will also be elected. Together with the President, they
will form the 15-member Bureau of the Forum. The Secretariat will designate a Secretary of
the Forum to serve ex officio as a member of the Bureau. The Bureau will serve as a
drafting committee for a document on the operational perspectives on further
implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action. Adoption of the Agenda and the
Programme of Work and Constitution of the Main Committee: After the agenda and the
programme of work proposed by the Secretariat are considered and adopted, the President of
the Forum will nominate one member from the Forum Bureau to serve as Chair of the Main
Committee. Presentation of reports from the Parliamentarians' Forum, the Youth Forum
and the NGO Forum: The reports of the three forums, which will take place immediately
prior to The Hague Forum, will be presented.
4. Operational Review and Assessment at the Country Level of the
Implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action: Speakers at the ministerial level from
each national delegation will address this item in the plenary sessions. Eminent persons
and others invited to the Forum, including representatives of civil society, will also
address these issues. Discussions will focus on the progress that has been made in the
implementation of the Programme of Action and will analyse operational experiences at the
country level. Speakers will comment on lessons learned and point out constraints faced by
individual countries and the international community as a whole in meeting the goals of
the ICPD. The major points made in these discussions will be brought to the attention of
the Bureau, acting as the Drafting Committee, for a document outlining operational
perspectives on further implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action.
5. Substantive Themes:The Main Committee will consider five
substantive themes (see below). Each theme will be introduced by a resource person and
will be followed by a discussion. At the conclusion of the discussion on each theme, the
Chair of the Main Committee will summarize the main points of discussion. The Bureau, in
its capacity as the Drafting Committee, will consider these and identify the points that
could be included in the document on operational perspectives mentioned
above. The themes are: Creating an enabling environment for further implementation of
the ICPD Programme of Action; Reproductive health, including family planning and
sexual health; and reproductive rights; Gender equality, equity and empowerment of women;
Strengthening partnerships; and Resource flows and financing for implementation of
the ICPD Programme of Action.
6. Operational Perspectives on Further Implementation of the ICPD
Programme of Action: The Bureau of the Forum, acting as the Drafting Committee, will
present the document on operational perspectives for consideration and adoption.
7. Report of The Hague Forum: The Forum Report, drafted by the
Rapporteur of the Forum, will summarize the proceedings of the plenary meetings and the
discussions of the Main Committee.
8. Closing Ceremony: The Closing Ceremony will take place on Friday
afternoon, 12 February 1999.
A background paper for The Hague Forum prepared by UNFPA, entitled "A Five-Year Review of Progress Towards the
Implementation of the Programme of Action of the ICPD,"
will be available on the UNFPA ICPD+5 web site by end-January. The paper is the main
document before the Forum.
PRE-HAGUE FORUM EVENTS
An International
Forum of Parliamentarians on ICPD+5 will be held on 4-6
February 1999, in The Hague, and will be hosted by the Dutch Parliament. For more
information about the parliamentarians' forum, and media accreditation to the meeting,
contact: Shiv Khare, Executive Coordinator of the International Forum of Parliamentarians,
c/o AFPPD, The Neurological Foundation Building, Sala Pamnak, 312 Rajavithi Road,
Phyathai, Bangkok 10400, Thailand. Fax: (662) 248-8827/247-9236; Tel.: (662) 248-6726/7 or
245-9596; E-mail: skhare@mozart.inet.co.th.
An NGO Forum and a
Youth Forum on ICPD+5 will be held on 6-7 February 1999. The NGO and Youth Forums
will take place at the same site as The Hague Forum: the NCC (see address above).
Registration for the NGO Forum will take place at the NCC on 5 February 1999, beginning at
3PM. Registration for the Youth Forum will take place at the City Hostel, 27
Scheetmakersstraat (Tel: (31) 0 70 315-7878)/Fax: (31) 0 70 315-7877) on 5 February from
10-3PM. An orientation session for youth representatives will be held at the City Hostel
on 5 February from 3-6PM. Participants at the NGO and Youth Forums will be invited to
attend The Hague Forum as observers.
Procedures and application forms for media
accreditation to the NGO, Youth and Hague Forums are available at:
http:www.unfpa.org/ICPD/media.htm. The deadline for advance media accreditation is 29
January 1999.
The World Population Foundation (WPF), a Dutch NGO, is the local
facilitator for organizations interested in participating in the NGO and Youth Forums,
and, assisted by the advisory groups of the NGO and Youth Forums, serves as the
secretariat. Information on the organization, process and substance of the NGO and Youth
Forums is available on the WPF NGO Forum web site at: http://www.ngoforum.org. WPF can be
contacted at: Tel: (31) 35 642-2304/Fax: (31) 35 642-1462(Fax)/E-mail: office@wpf.org.
E-mail queries can be directed to: ngoforum@wpf.org
or youthforum@wpf.org. The WPF web site is http://www.wpf.org. Information about these
events is also available on the UNFPA ICPD+5 web pages.
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information with your networks.
Previous ICPD+5 News Bulletins:
[#1 - May 1998] [#2 - June 1998]
[#3 - July 1998] [#4 - August 1998]
[#5 - September 1998]
[#6 - October 1998] [#7 - November 1998]
[#8 - December 1998]
