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The
demographic transition
Support for the young
Communicating about reproductive health
Intergenerational relations
Formal support for the elderly
Extending life and health
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Maximizing
resources for the new generations
The rapid growth of adolescent and elderly populations demands a
considerable investment in: health care including reproductive health information and
services; education and job training for the young; and social and financial support for
the elderly.
Better health, social and financial support services will take the place of large
families in providing for old age; encourage smaller, healthier, better-educated families;
and enable older people to remain healthy, independent and productive longer. This calls
for integrated service delivery, better information systems, better data on medical
interventions and preventive measures, and innovative steps to bolster community action
and volunteer organizations.
The generation of mature adults in their most productive years has profound family
obligations to older and younger generations, reflecting both altruism and extended
self-interest. They will also shape decisions about resource provision and policies
related to meeting the needs of all generations.
Declines in development assistance, economic crises and reductions in social
expenditures threaten the progress made over the past few decades.
The 1994 International Conference on Population and Development made a global
commitment to mobilize $17 billion annually by the year 2000 and over $21 billion by 2015
for population and reproductive health programmes. At present, less than $10 billion per
year is being directed to these programmes, four fifths of it from developing
countries’ own resources.
Many developing countries have increased their spending on reproductive health and
population programmes, but international assistance remains well below the $5.7 billion
per year that the ICPD agreed would be required by 2000. A financial shortfall would make
it impossible to meet the global demand for contraception, resulting each year in millions
of additional unintended or unwanted pregnancies, abortions and unintended births, tens of
thousands of additional maternal deaths, and at least a million more infant and child
deaths.
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