Every minute, every day, a woman in the developing world dies from pregnancy-related complications. Most of these—some 529,000 deaths a year—can be prevented. The solution boils down to a single word: Access. Access to information. Access to contraception. Access to quality care before, during and after childbirth.
Whether they represent the richest or the poorest populations of the world, parliamentarians have the power to vote -- to adopt laws and policies that can make a world of difference in the life of a woman.
Equality benefits everyone. Where girls have equal opportunity to education, societies become more prosperous. Where women have equal access to income, assets and services, families become healthier. When both men and women are able to participate equally and exercise their full human rights, the world benefits.
"Every
minute a mother goes missing. She perishes
in childbirth or from complications of pregnancy.
Her death is preventable. This tragedy adds
up to 529,000 deaths each year, leaving a
devastating void in families, communities,
entire regions. The emotional, social and
economic consequences affect every one of
us."
--Excerpt
from the 2004 World Population Day Poster
More
than 1 billion young people are between the
ages of 15 and 24. They need supportive relationships
and respect. In return, the world needs their
active participation.
"Life or
death is a political decision", reads this
poster from the International Parliamentarians'
Conference in Ottawa, Canada. At the conference, elected
representatives from 72 countries and territories
pledged to save lives by striving to allocate
up to 10 per cent of their nations' development
budgets for population and reproductive health
programmes. This poster asks if your government
has made the same committment.
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