UNFPA IN THE NEWS – JULY 31-AUGUST6, 2004

FIJI: Fighting HIV/AIDS

Fiji Times ran an August 2 interview with WHO representative in the South Pacific, Dr. Ken Chen, who talked about a pilot project developed to fight HIV/AIDS. Chen said: “What we doing is to continue to provide training but Fijis capacity is a lot better than other Pacific Island countries. HIV/AIDS treatment is new for most doctors and health workers, we have organized training for both clinical medical work and also counseling. Training material for counseling is to be documented so that it is used by health workers, doctors and nurses. A certain part is used by UNFPA for training school teachers.” Read: Fiji Times

FIJI: Representative Sent to Youth Conference

Fiji Live reported August 5 that Fiji will be represented by Epeli Vakalalabure, who was Speaker of the House at Youth Parliament 2004 in Suva , Fiji at the Youth Forum in Barcelona , Spain. The story noted the he is sponsored by the United Nations Population Fund and the Youth Ministry. He will advocate for adolescent reproductive health issues and plans to make a presentation in Barcelona focusing on youth issues in Fiji. Read: Fiji Live

INDIA: AIDS Education Programs for Youths

Indian Express reported August 5 that an HIV/AIDS education program for youths is likely to be discussed at a high-level meeting between senior officials of the HRD Ministry, NCERT and NACO to be held at Shastri Bhavan. The meeting will also be attended by representatives from UNICEF and UNFPA. Read: Indian Express

INDIA: Attractive Jobs

Business Today (India) reported August 4 that the most prestigious are jobs in India are at multilateral organizations such as the World Bank, International Monetary Fund and the United Nations along with the 20-odd other agencies under its auspices. "The tax-free pay makes the job more attractive," admits A. Gupta, 54, who works with United Nations Population Fund in Delhi. The story also noted that Ena Singh , a public health specialist at UNFPA, said a U.N. job is not just about the money, however. It ' s about values. "The tax-free pay does draw people to the job. But it ' s the nature of the work, the social and development issues that we work on that give us enormous job satisfaction."

INDONESIA: Better Quality of Life for Women

The Jakarta Post reported August 6 that at a seminar titled, "Developing a Better Quality of Life for Women," coordinator of the Indonesian Movement for Microfinance Development Titus K. Kurniadi said, "Unlike men, only a small number of women fail to repay their debts." The seminar was organized by the Indonesian Coalition for Population and Development and supported by the United Nations Population Fund. Read: Jakarta Post

IRAN: Family Planning Success

IRNA reported August 2 that Iran's government has managed to decrease rate of population growth significantly to 1.5 percent at present, said Iran ' s Representative to UNFPA Mohammad Abdel Ahad. The story noted, “He further said that the UN-affiliated Fund will proceed with its cooperation with Iran in the next five years and will also make use of Iran ' s successful experiences in other developing Muslim countries.” Read: IRNA

LIBERIA: Three Contracts Signed

The Analyst (Liberia) reported August 4 that the United Nations Population Fund signed three project agreements with the government of Liberia. The projects included Locality Mapping and Population Policy projects at the Ministry of Planning and Economic Affairs and the Demographic Training Project at the University of Liberia . Read: The Analyst

NIGERIA: Adolescent Pregnancy Cannot Be Ignored

The Vanguard (Nigeria) reported August 4 that in a chat with Good Health Weekly, Project Executive Director, Princess Olufemi-Kayode said society cannot ignore adolescent pregnancy. The story noted that Olufemi-Kayode cited adolescents aged 10-19 years comprise about a fifth of the world's population, equivalent to 1.2 billion young persons according to 2003 estimates of the UNFPA. Read: The Vanguard

UNITED STATES: State Department Responds to Editorial Support for UNFPA Funding

On August 3 and 4, The Miami Herald (U.S.), The Capital Times (U.S.) and The Wisconsin State Journal (U.S.) ran a letter by Arthur E. Dewey, Assistant Secretary for Population, Refugees and Migration at the U.S. Department of State, responding to recent editorial coverage in support of funding UNFPA. Dewey wrote: “The decision not to fund the United Nations Population Fund was based on careful consideration of all relevant facts in light of the Kemp-Kasten amendment to the Foreign Operations Appropriations Act, which requires that: ‘None of the funds made available in this Act…may be made available to any organization or program, which…supports or participates in the management of a program of coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization.’ China has a program of coercive abortion with severe fines and administrative penalties for giving birth to an unauthorized child. The Population Fund continues its support of, or involvement in, the management of China's coercive birth-limitation program. We have actively engaged China and the Population Fund and are prepared to consider funding it in the future. Our objective in China is the realization of a climate where women and men make decisions freely about the number, timing and spacing of their children.” Read: The Miami Herald, The Capital Times, Wisconsin State Journal, St. Petersburg Times, Detroit Free Press

UNITED STATES: Support for UNFPA Funding

Detroit Free Press (U.S.) ran an August 6 letter by Frances Kissling , President of Catholics for a Free Choice, who wrote: “In September 2003, Catholics for a Free Choice sponsored an interfaith delegation to China to investigate UNFPA family planning activities. Based on our observations of the program and interviews with government officials and private citizens, it was clear that the Bush administration's decision to defund the UNFPA was not driven by real events.” Read: Detroit Free Press

The Statesman Journal (U.S) ran an August 2 editorial that urged, “Once again, the United States has backed out of a United Nations family planning effort that is desperately needed around the world.” It concluded: “The United States cannot afford to solve the famine, disease and civil upheaval that will result; but we can afford to help with voluntary family-planning efforts. Let's do it.” Read: The Statesman Journal

The Herald (U.S.) ran an August 2 letter by Gwen Straight who wrote: “Recently the Bush administration announced that it was refusing to send our country's pledged contribution of $34 million to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). In doing so, the Bush administration will be responsible for close to a million maternal and child deaths each year.” She concluded, “This persistent discrimination against poverty- and gender-based violence that fuels the AIDS epidemic has to be stopped.”

The Ocean County Observer (U.S.) ran an August 2 letter by Thomas Fasano who urged support for the 34 Million Friends of UNFPA campaign: “UNFPA has been asking for 34 million donors to donate just $1 each for this very worthy cause. If you are a compassionate and understanding American, you should donate.”

UNITED STATES: UNFPA Funding an Election Issue

In an August 5 interview in Newsweek, President of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Gloria Feldt , mentioned funding for UNFPA as one of the major issues in the upcoming presidential election. Feldt said: “For Planned Parenthood, the other important issues are assuring access to family planning. Bush has now defunded the United Nations Population Fund three years in a row, resulting in millions of unintended pregnancies, millions of abortions and thousands of maternal and child deaths worldwide. We need an administration who will turn that around.” Read: Newsweek

Back to top