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30 January 2001
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Preparatory Committee for the 2001
Special Session of the General Assembly
On the Children’s World Summit
30 January 2001
4th Meeting (PM)
Girls were discriminated against even before birth, the Preparatory Committee for the General Assembly special session to follow up the 1990 World Summit for Children was told this afternoon, as it heard a panel discussion on the girl child.
Panelist Tomris Turmen (Turkey) said that in some parts of Asia, the strong and persistent cultural preference for male children resulted in prenatal sex selection, something that modern technology had rendered increasingly available and accessible.
It was the second day of the second substantive session of the Committee, which was conducting a preliminary examination of the end-of-decade reviews of the implementation of the World Declaration and Plan of Action, adopted at the 1990 World Summit for Children.
The panel discussion focused on the needs and rights of girls, with special attention to education, health and nutritional issues and sexual exploitation.
Elizabeth Croll said that girls were less likely to attend and achieve at school and were also less likely to have equal access to food and health care. However, girls were more likely to experience sexual exploitation and abuse. In some societies, girls experienced discrimination before birth, at birth and later in life. In other societies, discrimination set in later and accelerated during adolescence. Girls in poor rural and remote regions were especially disadvantaged in education, health and occupation.
The moderator, Awa N’Deye Ouedraogo, said that the girl child needed special protection because she started from a position of disadvantage. She should be able to enjoy all human rights, particularly those enshrined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, but she often faced discrimination.
The Committee also concluded a panel discussion on the adolescent development and participation from its morning session. It was also briefed on conferences and events related to the special session.
Committee Chairperson, M. Patricia Durrant (Jamaica) and representatives of Jamaica, Mozambique, Japan, Denmark, Canada and Ghana also spoke. Speakers from United Nations agencies, departments and offices also addressed the Committee.
The Committee will meet tomorrow morning at 10 a.m. to continue its work.
Committee Work Programme
The Preparatory Committee for the General Assembly special session to follow up the 1990 World Summit for Children met this afternoon to continue a panel discussion from the morning meeting – on adolescent development and participation -- and to begin a second panel discussion on the girl child.
Panel Discussion on Girl Child
AWA N’DEYE OUEDRAOGO of Burkina Faso, moderator of the panel discussion, said that the girl child needed special protection because she started from a position of disadvantage. She should be able to enjoy all human rights, particularly those enshrined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child. But, she often faced discrimination.
She added that the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) became aware of the particular problems of the girl child, and in 1990 the World Summit for Children adopted a resolution that called for special attention to be paid to girls. The girl had a right to health, nutrition, and education, among other rights. She should be protected from sexual exploitation and conflict. She should not be forced into an early marriage and her self-esteem and personality should be strengthened. The girl child should enjoy the same minimum age for marriage as her male counterpart and should be protected from crimes aimed at girls, such as crimes of honour, genital mutilation and infanticide.
It was necessary to take appropriate measures to combat gender discrimination and to give girls better access to education, she said. Education was key in the fight against discrimination. On the issue of girls and HIV/AIDS, girls needed added protection and education because children were living in a world marked by HIV/AIDS.
With regard to traditional and cultural practices, such genital mutilation and forced marriage, she said the Committee on the Rights of the Child had recommended the implementation of initiatives to end those practices. Child labour also particularly affected girls, both inside and outside of the home. That should end. Although there was a lack of legislation for the protection of girls, it was also true that even the existing legislation was not being implemented by most countries.
ELIZABETH CROLL, Professor at the University of London, said that in assessing girl’s well-being three trends stood out. Although girls shared improvement in health and education, data and field investigations confirmed that girls remained one of the most disadvantaged of social categories. Girls were less likely to attend and achieve at school. They were also less likely to have equal access to food and health care. They were more likely to be subject to intensive labour within and outside households. They were also more likely to experience sexual exploitation and abuse. In some societies, girls experienced discrimination before birth, at birth and later in life. In other societies, discrimination set in later and accelerated during adolescence. Girls in poor rural and remote regions were especially disadvantaged in education, health and occupation.
Discrimination had increased over the past 10 years, she said. That increase occurred both in times of economic development, reduced fertility and rising attention to rights, as well as in times of economic crisis, conflict or war. There were three major restraints. The first was the invisibility of discrimination against girls. Policy analysis rarely profiled the girl child. Girls were often excluded from development agendas. Years of valuable attention to children were only beginning to embrace gender at younger ages. Projects directed at women and children were not sufficient to meet the gender specific needs of girls.
The second constraint was a reluctance to recognize that family resource allocation to children might not be equitable, she continued. In some cases, daughters were perceived as burdens. Where daughters were expected to support families, they entered the workforce prematurely. Girls also felt a greater obligation to support their families. The third constraint concerns children in families. By reason of gender alone, girls were commonly disadvantaged. Policy rarely took account of the fact that girls were often assigned lesser value in the family.
The first challenge was to increase visibility of discrimination against girls, she added. Quantifiable data was the most powerful tool for policy commitment. The second challenge was to identify practical interventions to address the wider dimensions and causes of female inequality. There was also an urgent need to document and analyse lessons learned and good practice. Girls would remain the most disadvantaged category, without concerted action.
TOMRIS TURMEN, of Turkey, said that girls were discriminated against even before birth. In some parts of Asia, the strong and persistent cultural preference for male children resulted in prenatal sex selection, something that modern technology had rendered increasingly available and accessible.
In emphasizing the inequalities in health and nutrition, she said there were many forms of discrimination to which only girls were subjected. Girls alone had to undergo genital mutilation. Early marriage and child-bearing were common in many places, and every year some 14 million girls became mothers. Pregnancy at a young age carried risks for both mother and child. Girls and women were also particularly vulnerable to HIV infection as a result of a complex interplay of biological, social and economic factors. Fewer girls than boys knew how to protect themselves against HIV infection.
Turning to the indirect health impact on girls, she said that girls had a lower rate of literacy throughout the world. Education was a powerful determinant of future health and development. Educated girls were less likely to marry young, to have an unwanted pregnancy or to engage in high-risk behaviour, such as smoking, drug abuse and unsafe sex. Lack of education was closely associated with poverty, and poverty was linked to other scourges that particularly affected girls. Governments not only needed to affirm the rights of the girl child, but had the obligation to make those rights a reality.
SALEHUDDIN AHMED, Deputy Executive Director of the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee, said that although Bangladesh was economically poor, it was rich in human resources. The challenge was to utilize the hardworking and enterprising human resources. Fifty per cent of the population lived in dire poverty. The status of women was still low, and children suffered from malnutrition and abuse. Despite adverse conditions, however, Bangladesh had experienced some successes, including a doubling of food production and the founding of the Grameen Bank.
He explained that his organization worked in micro-credit, health, education and capacity-building. Two decades ago, poor women would ask the Advancement Committee if something could be done to educate their children. In 1984, it began a research programme to understand the problems of education for poor children. The programme found that poorer children did not have much of a chance in the formal system. To sustain a child in school, parents needed money to hire private tutors and needed to be literate. The Advancement Committee, therefore, developed non-formal primary education and basic education for older children.
Community participation was a fundamental aspect of that programme, he added. The schools operated three hours a day, six days a week. Much attention was paid to supervision of teachers and the programme organizers. The dropout rate was only some 5 per cent. Most students were later admitted to formal schools. Community participation had been vibrant. In the past 15 years, the programme had expanded. The Advancement Committee now had about 30,000 schools with 1.1 million children. Educating children was necessary and community participation was important. Teacher training was also crucial. Declarations and conventions were not enough. Serious and passionate commitment was required.
KASAMA VORAVARN, of Thailand, said that her country believed that it had achieved gender parity, until it discovered that there were large numbers of disabled children whose needs were not being addressed and many of them were female. With the help of UNICEF, the country had been able to devise programmes which met the needs of those disabled children.
She said Thailand also suffered from a high dropout rate, and one of the reasons for that was migration among the population. Girls, in particular, dropped out of school to look after their younger siblings or migrated to do so. Programmes that involved relaxing the school rules on admission and providing care for the younger siblings helped many of the girls stay in school. Another issue was giving extra help to students who did not excel academically and found themselves in trouble with the law. Progress had been made in terms of establishing government policies that targeted children, but there was still much to be done, especially in education.
BRISKELLIA ALVAREZ, President of Venezuela's National Children and Youth Assembly, said that in her region discrimination against girls was a serious problem. Although countries in Latin America had committed themselves to the goals of the Convention and the World Summit, there had been obstacles to achieving implementation of international instruments, including increases in poverty, political instability and debt. Poverty had been the main obstacle. Poverty did not end within one generation. Without education or health, girls were being deprived of the opportunity to develop. Violence, abuse, prostitution and injustice affected the development of girls and adolescents.
Violence in the family towards women affected children, she continued. The answer lay in changing the culture. Girls must be recognized as individuals. Very often, girls were labelled and prevented from developing their full potential. Girls and adolescents should be allowed to participate in society. Education opened doors to services, development and training. As a young woman, she felt it was her responsibility to strengthen areas and opportunities for young people. Globalization allowed people to unite. It was a great opportunity for policies on gender equality and adolescents. She hoped that the special session would achieve concrete action. Equality should be the banner.
Responding to the panel, the representative of Finland said she had found both sets of panellists very inspiring. She said that, in order to take into account the rights of children, new models were needed and a change in attitude. Children should take part in decision-making. In Finland's experience, legislation was important, but putting it into practices was crucial.
The representative of Morocco said there was a growing awareness in her country that adolescents had a right to take part in the decision-making process. An annual conference and a children’s parliament had been established, to give them a platform. Children were an indispensable tool in civil society and full- fledged partners who helped in the decision-making process. There should, however, be a balance between the rights of the child and the responsibility of children. The family should be given an important place in society.
The representative of Ukraine expressed concern about the sexual exploitation of girls, which was a problem in her country. Ukraine had also seen an increase in crimes by young girls. Research had shown that one of the reasons for that negative trend was a breakdown in family structures, and drug abuse, among other causes. In dealing with equality in education, Ukraine had given equal access to boys and girls. The student population in 2000 was 49 per cent girls and that reflected the demographic situation among the population at large. The system was still patriarchal and stereotypical, and that was reflected in daily life. There was lack of knowledge about women, which affected her active participation in the decision-making process.
The representative of Ghana said that the girl child was the mother of tomorrow. Swift and concerted action was needed, and cultural and traditional attitudes should be changed. Specific benchmarks to monitor progress should be identified to ensure that the girl child fulfilled her potential.
The representative of Burkina Faso asked what progress had been made in the area of female genital mutilation. Also, what measures were taken to stop the sexual exploitation of girls?
The representative of Venezuela said that generations were lost with the loss of a woman’s life. Every second, a woman died. What was being done to avoid that? They died from malnutrition. They died just because they were women.
The representative of the World Bank welcomed the discussion on the girl child. The World Bank initiative on children was focused on education, health and social protection. The life-cycle approach was the basic approach and included children within families. Focus on the family or household included complex relationships. Educating girls was crucial for development. The Bank also focused on technical support, building awareness, and 31 education target countries with large gender disparities. The situation had improved. The World Bank emphasized the central role of public health priorities. Greater attention needed to be given to child mortality. A strong relationship between long-term development targets and child health strategies should be established.
The representative of China said that her country had 300 million children and more than half of them were girls. The Government had made great efforts to address the needs of girls, especially since the World Congress on Women. Steps had been taken to reduce discrimination against girls, especially within the family, and programmes had been established to ensure basic education for girls. The final outcome document should focus on the steps that needed to be taken to help the girl child realize her full rights.
The representative of the UNICEF NGO Working Group on Girls said her Group was especially concerned that the outcome document reflect the vision and commitment to the girl child that had been consistently demonstrated by Member States and UNICEF. To realize the rights of the girl child, the outcome document must be strengthened to focus on action-oriented strategies for girls' rights, with targets and time frames.
The representative of Sweden said that females were discriminated against throughout their lives. That was often based on the belief that boys were of greater economic value. Girls were often more malnourished than boys and ran the risk of becoming victims of violence and sexual abuse, sometimes within their own families. Women were often forced into sex and that was linked to the spread of HIV/AIDS.
The representative of Benin said delegates now needed to take action because they already knew the problems. The main issue was poverty. Many countries had not had the advantage of having well-functioning NGOs. The world was the way it was today because women did not take part in the decision-making process. The problems of the girl child needed to be settled by 2020.
Summarizing the discussion, the panel’s moderator, Ms. N’DEYE OUEDRAOGO, said that women and children had suffered from a long tradition of discrimination. The special session needed to take stock of reality. While there had been some progress in the implementation of programmes, change in attitudes was slow. Sexual exploitation was a growing phenomenon in many countries, both developed and developing. Pockets of poverty saw an increase in that problem. While both boys and girls were affected, girls were generally more affected by sexual exploitation. The practice should denounced and the perpetrators sanctioned. The press also played a key role in public awareness campaigns. Measures must be taken to protect the victims of sexual exploitation.
M. PATRICIA DURRANT (Jamaica), Chairperson of the Committee, said the panel discussions would inform the outcome of the special session.
Briefings on Conferences and Events
The Committee then heard briefings on conferences and events particularly relevant to the special session on children.
ADO VAHER, UNICEF Director of United Nations Affairs, said that the series of United Nations conferences had changed the way in which the United Nations system operated, in particular, the way in which it delivered operational programmes at the country level. The objective was to respond to the challenges of the global agenda in a way that recognized the leadership of national governments, involved all stakeholders and delivered the desired output in the most efficient and effective manner. Under the overarching goal of poverty eradication, the United Nations had put in place a framework to guide its efforts in support of a focused global agenda. The outcome of the World Summit for Children and the provisions of the Convention were now incorporated into a system- wide framework for action.
While UNICEF had the lead agency responsibility for the special session, implementation and follow-up were a collective responsibility of the United Nations system, he said. At the national level, a key instrument of follow-up to international conferences was the common country assessment and the United Nations development framework process. The country assessment provided a common database and set of indicators -– a snapshot of conditions at the country level. It provided the basis of the Development Assistance Framework. The United Nations system was now preparing a “road map for implementation of the Millennium Declaration. The Declaration provided an overarching context for linking all conferences and guiding the work of the Organization.
MARJORIE TAYLOR (Jamaica) said the fifth Ministerial Meeting on Children and Social Policy in the Americas, held in Kingston, Jamaica, in October 2000, was the first such meetings for the twenty-first century. The meeting provided a unique opportunity not only to assess the lessons learned during the 1990s, but also to set future goals. Reports submitted by delegations demonstrated that the situation of children, adolescents and women in the region had improved. Important strides had been made in the areas of health, nutrition, education and sanitation. In spite of progress, however, the region continued to face significant challenges. Every effort must be made to continue to address the ongoing problems of social and economic inequalities, lack of access to quality health services, and exploitation of children in all forms.
She said that economic challenges faced by countries in the region as a result of globalization and poverty had a negative impact on the ability of governments to achieve the level of social progress necessary to meet the needs of children. The Kingston Consensus, which had emerged from the meeting’s deliberations, highlighted the determination of governments in the Americas to develop and implement programmes which would facilitate maximum progress in fulfilling the goals of the World Summit.
CARLOS DOS SANTOS (Mozambique) who briefed the Committee on the work of the Preparatory Committee for the Conference on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects, said that although a good number of regions had taken decisive steps to combat the illicit trade in small arms, he wanted to single out the efforts of the African continent as it was the most affected region in the world.
He said that the ministerial meeting that adopted the Bamako Declaration last December represented a significant commitment to act by the leaders of the region. The meeting had been mandated by the heads of State and government of the continent. Other regions had also taken important action, namely, the Organization of American States (OAS) which had adopted the Inter-American Convention. The European Union and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), among others, had also taken important action.
He believed that the Conference on small arms would make an effective contribution to protecting the rights of the child. That would be done by highlighting the impact of small arms and light weapons on children and by defining responsibilities to ensure children's protection from the illicit trade of those weapons.
During his briefing of the Committee on the Second World Congress against Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children, KIYOTAKA AKASAKA (Japan) said that since the First World Congress, the issue of commercial sexual exploitation of children had become widely recognized and much progress had been made, although much more needed to be done.
The objectives of the Second World Congress, he added, were to enhance political commitment to the implementation of the Agenda for Action adopted at the First Congress; to review progress in implementing the Agenda for Action; to share expertise and good practices, as well as identify problem areas; and to strengthen the follow-up processes of the World Congress. The main themes of the Second World Congress would be child pornography, prevention, protection and recovery of children from sexual exploitation; trafficking in children; and the role and involvement of the private sector, among other topics.
He called on all Member States to become fully involved in the Second World Congress, because partnerships among all concerned were important in tackling the issue of sexual exploitation of children.
JORGEN BOJER (Denmark) said the process for financing for development was well under way. The General Assembly had established a preparatory committee to prepare for the event and that committee had elected a 15-member bureau. It was not just a question of establishing new goals, but of identifying the best way to reach targets already agreed upon. Financing was the central element in achieving goals.
In preparations for the event, considerable progress had been made, he said. The agenda, agreed upon last summer, centred on six main themes, including: mobilizing international resources for development and other private flows, trade, increasing official development assistance (ODA) and the issue of debt. In the most recent preparatory meeting, the date of the event had been agreed upon. Most Member States agreed that the high-level meeting should be held in a capital of a developing country. Although an invitation from a capital had not yet been issued, it was decided that the meeting would be held in the second half of March 2002.
The meeting’s purpose was to generate a broader international understanding of the complementary functions of sources for financing for development, he said. The preparatory committee had made an effort to ensure that the process would be inclusive. While many groups were taking part, it was still a United Nations process. The outcome of the process should be visible in the real world. Major results would include reversing the decline of ODA, increasing the spread of foreign direct investment, and enhancing political will to improve market access for exports of least developed countries.
LANDON PEARSON (Canada) said that Canada had been deeply involved in three recent conferences, including the International Conference on War-Affected Children held last September in her country. With the urgent need for action in mind, all governments present at the Conference adopted the Agenda for War-Affected Children. The agreed Agenda demanded the unconditional release of all abducted children, the rehabilitation of girls and boys, and their reintegration with families. Participating States also agreed to ensure the full, safe and unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance to war-affected children.
The spread of small arms had a devastating impact on children, she said. The Agenda recognized that during armed conflict, the decline in access to basic health care had a detrimental impact on the health and well-being of children. Conflict and HIV/AIDS collided in many destructive ways. At the Conference, States called for involvement of war-affected youth, particularly adolescents in peace processes and decisions that affected them.
NANA EFFAH-APENTENG (Ghana), in briefing the Committee on the Conference on War-Affected Children in West Africa, said the Conference had devoted attention to the scope of the problem of war-affected children, the implementation of norms and standards already set by the international community for child protection, and to the complexities involved in the process of demobilization, rehabilitation and reintegration of those children.
He further stated that the Conference had adopted two documents at the end of its deliberations: the Accra Declaration on War-Affected Children in West Africa; and a Plan of Action for addressing the problem in the subregion. The Declaration recognized children as the guarantors of the future, as well as the need to strengthen regional initiatives for their security and well-being, among other things. The Plan of Action outlined a focused action-oriented agenda, aimed at protecting children from the scourge of war. It also included a proposal that an annual West African Week of Truce for War-Affected Children be observed to coincide with the Day of the African Child on 16 June.
Ambassador SAREVA, the Chef de Cabinet to the President of the General Assembly, said the General Assembly resolution was based on the premise that governments should take action to implement the Millennium Summit Declaration. It reinforced the need for an integrated and coordinated approach.
He further stated that the President of the General Assembly was convening and chairing monthly meetings with coordinators of all the events in an attempt to make them complementary. Topics addressed included civil society participation and how the outcomes of events should be reported back to the General Assembly. The United Nations system, as envisaged in the resolution, was prepared to assist Member States in implementing the Declaration. That would require coordination between all concerned, and there was a need for enhanced partnership between the United Nations, Members States and civil society.
ANGELA E.V. KING, Assistant Secretary-General, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, said that Beijing +5 had examined progress achieved and remaining obstacles affecting the girl child. The outcome document emphasized areas crucial for mapping the priorities of the world community in next few years. In the area of education, Beijing +5 emphasized closing the gender gap in primary education. It also included improved development of gender-sensitive curricula and the elimination of gender stereotypes in education materials, as well as emphasizing the importance of girls’ access to new technologies. HIV/AIDS was also discussed, focusing on affordable treatment for women and girls.
The Beijing +5 conference highlighted the need to criminalize all forms of violence against women and girls of all ages, she added. It also advocated development of effective strategies to combat trafficking and to address its root causes. The eradication of harmful practices, such as honour crimes and racially motivated crimes against girls, was also addressed, as well as the issue of women in armed conflict. The concept of gender mainstreaming was a potent method of ensuring gender equality among girls and boys.
JOHN CADDY of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) said that the Third United Nations Conference on Least Developed Countries was the first in a series of conferences. It would be a holistic conference, and it was being organized by all the agencies of the United Nations system. The conference had three tracks, the most important of which was individual country programmes. A second track was the global programme of action as an intergovernmental process. It set a wide range of targets for the international community, including five related to children.
The conference would have a number of themes, including governance, agriculture, investment, energy, transportation and telecommunications. The emphasis was on concrete initiatives and specific action, not on words. The holistic approach would also include civil society, parliamentarians and mayors from around the world, as well as the business community. Children would play an important role throughout the conference.
FREDERICK WEIBGEN, a representative of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), said the 1990 World Summit for Children had provided a frame of reference for a number of activities that could be seen as contributing to child welfare. Significantly, the nutrition goals of the Summit had been fully incorporated into the Global Plan of Action for Nutrition that had emerged from the 1992 FAO/World Health Organization (WHO)-sponsored International Conference on Nutrition.
He added that while most of FAO's efforts were not specifically directed at children, they had been designed to benefit children. He, therefore, noted with concern that the draft outcome document of the special session gave little emphasis to nutrition and even less attention to the issue of food security.
It was his organization's firm expectation that the outcome of the special session and the World Food Summit five years later would combine to create the conditions in which generation after generation of children would be well nourished and grow and develop to their full potential, he concluded.
Mr. LINDBLAD, the representative of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), said that 36 million people, including 1.5 million children, were currently living with HIV/AIDS, while 14 million children had been orphaned because of the pandemic. He said that the General Assembly, in recognizing the seriousness of the situation, had decided in November to convene a special session from 25 to 27 June. That represented a global commitment to combat the disease. However, because time was short, the preparatory committee had been meeting informally.
He added that it had been agreed that people living with AIDS, NGOs and civil society should participate in the special session. There was a direct link between the HIV/AIDS preparatory committee and this Committee, because half of the new HIV/AIDS infections were among young people between the ages of 15 and 24. Education played a crucial role in combating HIV/AIDS; yet, the education infrastructure in many countries had been devastated by the pandemic through the death of teachers, as well as through children missing school to take care of sick parents. In Africa, the orphan crisis had reached unprecedented proportions.
Mr. DAVID, of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that four regional intergovernmental meetings were being held in preparation for the Third World Conference on Racism. Three had taken place, and one would take place soon. They were key components of preparations for the World Conference. The preparatory events and written submissions would inform the final outcome. Children would receive emphasis during the preparations. Representatives of human rights treaty bodies were participants to the regional intergovernmental World Conference preparatory meetings.
The preparatory process for the conference and special session should pay special attention to the implementation of the rights of the child, he added. One of the main issues would be the situation of children in armed conflict. Racism was one of the current causes of armed conflict. The World Conference would address that issue. The Conference would also focus on vulnerable groups in need of special protection, such as migrants. Protecting children’s right to education could be important. The role that education could play in preventing racism could not be stressed enough. The High Commissioner had stressed that children should be a strong focus of the Conference and actively participate in it.
Mr. NIZAMUDDIN, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), said that the agenda at the International Conference on Population and Development +5 had five common areas, including the prevention of HIV/AIDs, as well as girls’ education. The World Summit for Children and the ICPD were closely linked. ICPD shared the goals of prevention of HIV/AIDS and increased awareness of reproductive health. The Conference emphasized people-centred development and the need to provide access to sexual health. One decade later, the world was undergoing new challenges. HIV/AIDS had reversed decades of gain. Girls were increasingly at risk. Gender was directly linked to reproductive health. Young people must be able to protect themselves from disease and exploitation. UNFPA was fully behind the preparatory committee’s goals.
Reporting to the Committee on the Special Session on Social Development, JOHN LANGMORE, Director, Division for Social Policy and Development of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, said that session had covered such issues as reduction in market turbulence, speedy implementation of debt relief and creating an enabling environment for development. There were nine commitments which included a global goal for poverty reduction. The importance of including poverty reduction as part of macro-economic policies was also discussed, as was the cost -- some $8 billion -- to provide basic education for children all over the world.
He added that the session had stressed the importance of increasing research on common diseases in developing countries and enhancing national and international resources for social development. It had also called for strengthening global governance by strengthening ECOSOC and had pointed out the social impact of sanctions on children. Participants further had agreed that prohibiting child labour, tackling gender inequality and giving special attention to women and children with disabilities in post-conflict environments should also be discussed. The session was important in setting the framework for the Committee's work.
* *** *
Special Session of the General Assembly
On the Children’s World Summit
30 January 2001
4th Meeting (PM)
Girls were discriminated against even before birth, the Preparatory Committee for the General Assembly special session to follow up the 1990 World Summit for Children was told this afternoon, as it heard a panel discussion on the girl child.
Panelist Tomris Turmen (Turkey) said that in some parts of Asia, the strong and persistent cultural preference for male children resulted in prenatal sex selection, something that modern technology had rendered increasingly available and accessible.
It was the second day of the second substantive session of the Committee, which was conducting a preliminary examination of the end-of-decade reviews of the implementation of the World Declaration and Plan of Action, adopted at the 1990 World Summit for Children.
The panel discussion focused on the needs and rights of girls, with special attention to education, health and nutritional issues and sexual exploitation.
Elizabeth Croll said that girls were less likely to attend and achieve at school and were also less likely to have equal access to food and health care. However, girls were more likely to experience sexual exploitation and abuse. In some societies, girls experienced discrimination before birth, at birth and later in life. In other societies, discrimination set in later and accelerated during adolescence. Girls in poor rural and remote regions were especially disadvantaged in education, health and occupation.
The moderator, Awa N’Deye Ouedraogo, said that the girl child needed special protection because she started from a position of disadvantage. She should be able to enjoy all human rights, particularly those enshrined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, but she often faced discrimination.
The Committee also concluded a panel discussion on the adolescent development and participation from its morning session. It was also briefed on conferences and events related to the special session.
Committee Chairperson, M. Patricia Durrant (Jamaica) and representatives of Jamaica, Mozambique, Japan, Denmark, Canada and Ghana also spoke. Speakers from United Nations agencies, departments and offices also addressed the Committee.
The Committee will meet tomorrow morning at 10 a.m. to continue its work.
Committee Work Programme
The Preparatory Committee for the General Assembly special session to follow up the 1990 World Summit for Children met this afternoon to continue a panel discussion from the morning meeting – on adolescent development and participation -- and to begin a second panel discussion on the girl child.
Panel Discussion on Girl Child
AWA N’DEYE OUEDRAOGO of Burkina Faso, moderator of the panel discussion, said that the girl child needed special protection because she started from a position of disadvantage. She should be able to enjoy all human rights, particularly those enshrined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child. But, she often faced discrimination.
She added that the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) became aware of the particular problems of the girl child, and in 1990 the World Summit for Children adopted a resolution that called for special attention to be paid to girls. The girl had a right to health, nutrition, and education, among other rights. She should be protected from sexual exploitation and conflict. She should not be forced into an early marriage and her self-esteem and personality should be strengthened. The girl child should enjoy the same minimum age for marriage as her male counterpart and should be protected from crimes aimed at girls, such as crimes of honour, genital mutilation and infanticide.
It was necessary to take appropriate measures to combat gender discrimination and to give girls better access to education, she said. Education was key in the fight against discrimination. On the issue of girls and HIV/AIDS, girls needed added protection and education because children were living in a world marked by HIV/AIDS.
With regard to traditional and cultural practices, such genital mutilation and forced marriage, she said the Committee on the Rights of the Child had recommended the implementation of initiatives to end those practices. Child labour also particularly affected girls, both inside and outside of the home. That should end. Although there was a lack of legislation for the protection of girls, it was also true that even the existing legislation was not being implemented by most countries.
ELIZABETH CROLL, Professor at the University of London, said that in assessing girl’s well-being three trends stood out. Although girls shared improvement in health and education, data and field investigations confirmed that girls remained one of the most disadvantaged of social categories. Girls were less likely to attend and achieve at school. They were also less likely to have equal access to food and health care. They were more likely to be subject to intensive labour within and outside households. They were also more likely to experience sexual exploitation and abuse. In some societies, girls experienced discrimination before birth, at birth and later in life. In other societies, discrimination set in later and accelerated during adolescence. Girls in poor rural and remote regions were especially disadvantaged in education, health and occupation.
Discrimination had increased over the past 10 years, she said. That increase occurred both in times of economic development, reduced fertility and rising attention to rights, as well as in times of economic crisis, conflict or war. There were three major restraints. The first was the invisibility of discrimination against girls. Policy analysis rarely profiled the girl child. Girls were often excluded from development agendas. Years of valuable attention to children were only beginning to embrace gender at younger ages. Projects directed at women and children were not sufficient to meet the gender specific needs of girls.
The second constraint was a reluctance to recognize that family resource allocation to children might not be equitable, she continued. In some cases, daughters were perceived as burdens. Where daughters were expected to support families, they entered the workforce prematurely. Girls also felt a greater obligation to support their families. The third constraint concerns children in families. By reason of gender alone, girls were commonly disadvantaged. Policy rarely took account of the fact that girls were often assigned lesser value in the family.
The first challenge was to increase visibility of discrimination against girls, she added. Quantifiable data was the most powerful tool for policy commitment. The second challenge was to identify practical interventions to address the wider dimensions and causes of female inequality. There was also an urgent need to document and analyse lessons learned and good practice. Girls would remain the most disadvantaged category, without concerted action.
TOMRIS TURMEN, of Turkey, said that girls were discriminated against even before birth. In some parts of Asia, the strong and persistent cultural preference for male children resulted in prenatal sex selection, something that modern technology had rendered increasingly available and accessible.
In emphasizing the inequalities in health and nutrition, she said there were many forms of discrimination to which only girls were subjected. Girls alone had to undergo genital mutilation. Early marriage and child-bearing were common in many places, and every year some 14 million girls became mothers. Pregnancy at a young age carried risks for both mother and child. Girls and women were also particularly vulnerable to HIV infection as a result of a complex interplay of biological, social and economic factors. Fewer girls than boys knew how to protect themselves against HIV infection.
Turning to the indirect health impact on girls, she said that girls had a lower rate of literacy throughout the world. Education was a powerful determinant of future health and development. Educated girls were less likely to marry young, to have an unwanted pregnancy or to engage in high-risk behaviour, such as smoking, drug abuse and unsafe sex. Lack of education was closely associated with poverty, and poverty was linked to other scourges that particularly affected girls. Governments not only needed to affirm the rights of the girl child, but had the obligation to make those rights a reality.
SALEHUDDIN AHMED, Deputy Executive Director of the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee, said that although Bangladesh was economically poor, it was rich in human resources. The challenge was to utilize the hardworking and enterprising human resources. Fifty per cent of the population lived in dire poverty. The status of women was still low, and children suffered from malnutrition and abuse. Despite adverse conditions, however, Bangladesh had experienced some successes, including a doubling of food production and the founding of the Grameen Bank.
He explained that his organization worked in micro-credit, health, education and capacity-building. Two decades ago, poor women would ask the Advancement Committee if something could be done to educate their children. In 1984, it began a research programme to understand the problems of education for poor children. The programme found that poorer children did not have much of a chance in the formal system. To sustain a child in school, parents needed money to hire private tutors and needed to be literate. The Advancement Committee, therefore, developed non-formal primary education and basic education for older children.
Community participation was a fundamental aspect of that programme, he added. The schools operated three hours a day, six days a week. Much attention was paid to supervision of teachers and the programme organizers. The dropout rate was only some 5 per cent. Most students were later admitted to formal schools. Community participation had been vibrant. In the past 15 years, the programme had expanded. The Advancement Committee now had about 30,000 schools with 1.1 million children. Educating children was necessary and community participation was important. Teacher training was also crucial. Declarations and conventions were not enough. Serious and passionate commitment was required.
KASAMA VORAVARN, of Thailand, said that her country believed that it had achieved gender parity, until it discovered that there were large numbers of disabled children whose needs were not being addressed and many of them were female. With the help of UNICEF, the country had been able to devise programmes which met the needs of those disabled children.
She said Thailand also suffered from a high dropout rate, and one of the reasons for that was migration among the population. Girls, in particular, dropped out of school to look after their younger siblings or migrated to do so. Programmes that involved relaxing the school rules on admission and providing care for the younger siblings helped many of the girls stay in school. Another issue was giving extra help to students who did not excel academically and found themselves in trouble with the law. Progress had been made in terms of establishing government policies that targeted children, but there was still much to be done, especially in education.
BRISKELLIA ALVAREZ, President of Venezuela's National Children and Youth Assembly, said that in her region discrimination against girls was a serious problem. Although countries in Latin America had committed themselves to the goals of the Convention and the World Summit, there had been obstacles to achieving implementation of international instruments, including increases in poverty, political instability and debt. Poverty had been the main obstacle. Poverty did not end within one generation. Without education or health, girls were being deprived of the opportunity to develop. Violence, abuse, prostitution and injustice affected the development of girls and adolescents.
Violence in the family towards women affected children, she continued. The answer lay in changing the culture. Girls must be recognized as individuals. Very often, girls were labelled and prevented from developing their full potential. Girls and adolescents should be allowed to participate in society. Education opened doors to services, development and training. As a young woman, she felt it was her responsibility to strengthen areas and opportunities for young people. Globalization allowed people to unite. It was a great opportunity for policies on gender equality and adolescents. She hoped that the special session would achieve concrete action. Equality should be the banner.
Responding to the panel, the representative of Finland said she had found both sets of panellists very inspiring. She said that, in order to take into account the rights of children, new models were needed and a change in attitude. Children should take part in decision-making. In Finland's experience, legislation was important, but putting it into practices was crucial.
The representative of Morocco said there was a growing awareness in her country that adolescents had a right to take part in the decision-making process. An annual conference and a children’s parliament had been established, to give them a platform. Children were an indispensable tool in civil society and full- fledged partners who helped in the decision-making process. There should, however, be a balance between the rights of the child and the responsibility of children. The family should be given an important place in society.
The representative of Ukraine expressed concern about the sexual exploitation of girls, which was a problem in her country. Ukraine had also seen an increase in crimes by young girls. Research had shown that one of the reasons for that negative trend was a breakdown in family structures, and drug abuse, among other causes. In dealing with equality in education, Ukraine had given equal access to boys and girls. The student population in 2000 was 49 per cent girls and that reflected the demographic situation among the population at large. The system was still patriarchal and stereotypical, and that was reflected in daily life. There was lack of knowledge about women, which affected her active participation in the decision-making process.
The representative of Ghana said that the girl child was the mother of tomorrow. Swift and concerted action was needed, and cultural and traditional attitudes should be changed. Specific benchmarks to monitor progress should be identified to ensure that the girl child fulfilled her potential.
The representative of Burkina Faso asked what progress had been made in the area of female genital mutilation. Also, what measures were taken to stop the sexual exploitation of girls?
The representative of Venezuela said that generations were lost with the loss of a woman’s life. Every second, a woman died. What was being done to avoid that? They died from malnutrition. They died just because they were women.
The representative of the World Bank welcomed the discussion on the girl child. The World Bank initiative on children was focused on education, health and social protection. The life-cycle approach was the basic approach and included children within families. Focus on the family or household included complex relationships. Educating girls was crucial for development. The Bank also focused on technical support, building awareness, and 31 education target countries with large gender disparities. The situation had improved. The World Bank emphasized the central role of public health priorities. Greater attention needed to be given to child mortality. A strong relationship between long-term development targets and child health strategies should be established.
The representative of China said that her country had 300 million children and more than half of them were girls. The Government had made great efforts to address the needs of girls, especially since the World Congress on Women. Steps had been taken to reduce discrimination against girls, especially within the family, and programmes had been established to ensure basic education for girls. The final outcome document should focus on the steps that needed to be taken to help the girl child realize her full rights.
The representative of the UNICEF NGO Working Group on Girls said her Group was especially concerned that the outcome document reflect the vision and commitment to the girl child that had been consistently demonstrated by Member States and UNICEF. To realize the rights of the girl child, the outcome document must be strengthened to focus on action-oriented strategies for girls' rights, with targets and time frames.
The representative of Sweden said that females were discriminated against throughout their lives. That was often based on the belief that boys were of greater economic value. Girls were often more malnourished than boys and ran the risk of becoming victims of violence and sexual abuse, sometimes within their own families. Women were often forced into sex and that was linked to the spread of HIV/AIDS.
The representative of Benin said delegates now needed to take action because they already knew the problems. The main issue was poverty. Many countries had not had the advantage of having well-functioning NGOs. The world was the way it was today because women did not take part in the decision-making process. The problems of the girl child needed to be settled by 2020.
Summarizing the discussion, the panel’s moderator, Ms. N’DEYE OUEDRAOGO, said that women and children had suffered from a long tradition of discrimination. The special session needed to take stock of reality. While there had been some progress in the implementation of programmes, change in attitudes was slow. Sexual exploitation was a growing phenomenon in many countries, both developed and developing. Pockets of poverty saw an increase in that problem. While both boys and girls were affected, girls were generally more affected by sexual exploitation. The practice should denounced and the perpetrators sanctioned. The press also played a key role in public awareness campaigns. Measures must be taken to protect the victims of sexual exploitation.
M. PATRICIA DURRANT (Jamaica), Chairperson of the Committee, said the panel discussions would inform the outcome of the special session.
Briefings on Conferences and Events
The Committee then heard briefings on conferences and events particularly relevant to the special session on children.
ADO VAHER, UNICEF Director of United Nations Affairs, said that the series of United Nations conferences had changed the way in which the United Nations system operated, in particular, the way in which it delivered operational programmes at the country level. The objective was to respond to the challenges of the global agenda in a way that recognized the leadership of national governments, involved all stakeholders and delivered the desired output in the most efficient and effective manner. Under the overarching goal of poverty eradication, the United Nations had put in place a framework to guide its efforts in support of a focused global agenda. The outcome of the World Summit for Children and the provisions of the Convention were now incorporated into a system- wide framework for action.
While UNICEF had the lead agency responsibility for the special session, implementation and follow-up were a collective responsibility of the United Nations system, he said. At the national level, a key instrument of follow-up to international conferences was the common country assessment and the United Nations development framework process. The country assessment provided a common database and set of indicators -– a snapshot of conditions at the country level. It provided the basis of the Development Assistance Framework. The United Nations system was now preparing a “road map for implementation of the Millennium Declaration. The Declaration provided an overarching context for linking all conferences and guiding the work of the Organization.
MARJORIE TAYLOR (Jamaica) said the fifth Ministerial Meeting on Children and Social Policy in the Americas, held in Kingston, Jamaica, in October 2000, was the first such meetings for the twenty-first century. The meeting provided a unique opportunity not only to assess the lessons learned during the 1990s, but also to set future goals. Reports submitted by delegations demonstrated that the situation of children, adolescents and women in the region had improved. Important strides had been made in the areas of health, nutrition, education and sanitation. In spite of progress, however, the region continued to face significant challenges. Every effort must be made to continue to address the ongoing problems of social and economic inequalities, lack of access to quality health services, and exploitation of children in all forms.
She said that economic challenges faced by countries in the region as a result of globalization and poverty had a negative impact on the ability of governments to achieve the level of social progress necessary to meet the needs of children. The Kingston Consensus, which had emerged from the meeting’s deliberations, highlighted the determination of governments in the Americas to develop and implement programmes which would facilitate maximum progress in fulfilling the goals of the World Summit.
CARLOS DOS SANTOS (Mozambique) who briefed the Committee on the work of the Preparatory Committee for the Conference on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects, said that although a good number of regions had taken decisive steps to combat the illicit trade in small arms, he wanted to single out the efforts of the African continent as it was the most affected region in the world.
He said that the ministerial meeting that adopted the Bamako Declaration last December represented a significant commitment to act by the leaders of the region. The meeting had been mandated by the heads of State and government of the continent. Other regions had also taken important action, namely, the Organization of American States (OAS) which had adopted the Inter-American Convention. The European Union and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), among others, had also taken important action.
He believed that the Conference on small arms would make an effective contribution to protecting the rights of the child. That would be done by highlighting the impact of small arms and light weapons on children and by defining responsibilities to ensure children's protection from the illicit trade of those weapons.
During his briefing of the Committee on the Second World Congress against Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children, KIYOTAKA AKASAKA (Japan) said that since the First World Congress, the issue of commercial sexual exploitation of children had become widely recognized and much progress had been made, although much more needed to be done.
The objectives of the Second World Congress, he added, were to enhance political commitment to the implementation of the Agenda for Action adopted at the First Congress; to review progress in implementing the Agenda for Action; to share expertise and good practices, as well as identify problem areas; and to strengthen the follow-up processes of the World Congress. The main themes of the Second World Congress would be child pornography, prevention, protection and recovery of children from sexual exploitation; trafficking in children; and the role and involvement of the private sector, among other topics.
He called on all Member States to become fully involved in the Second World Congress, because partnerships among all concerned were important in tackling the issue of sexual exploitation of children.
JORGEN BOJER (Denmark) said the process for financing for development was well under way. The General Assembly had established a preparatory committee to prepare for the event and that committee had elected a 15-member bureau. It was not just a question of establishing new goals, but of identifying the best way to reach targets already agreed upon. Financing was the central element in achieving goals.
In preparations for the event, considerable progress had been made, he said. The agenda, agreed upon last summer, centred on six main themes, including: mobilizing international resources for development and other private flows, trade, increasing official development assistance (ODA) and the issue of debt. In the most recent preparatory meeting, the date of the event had been agreed upon. Most Member States agreed that the high-level meeting should be held in a capital of a developing country. Although an invitation from a capital had not yet been issued, it was decided that the meeting would be held in the second half of March 2002.
The meeting’s purpose was to generate a broader international understanding of the complementary functions of sources for financing for development, he said. The preparatory committee had made an effort to ensure that the process would be inclusive. While many groups were taking part, it was still a United Nations process. The outcome of the process should be visible in the real world. Major results would include reversing the decline of ODA, increasing the spread of foreign direct investment, and enhancing political will to improve market access for exports of least developed countries.
LANDON PEARSON (Canada) said that Canada had been deeply involved in three recent conferences, including the International Conference on War-Affected Children held last September in her country. With the urgent need for action in mind, all governments present at the Conference adopted the Agenda for War-Affected Children. The agreed Agenda demanded the unconditional release of all abducted children, the rehabilitation of girls and boys, and their reintegration with families. Participating States also agreed to ensure the full, safe and unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance to war-affected children.
The spread of small arms had a devastating impact on children, she said. The Agenda recognized that during armed conflict, the decline in access to basic health care had a detrimental impact on the health and well-being of children. Conflict and HIV/AIDS collided in many destructive ways. At the Conference, States called for involvement of war-affected youth, particularly adolescents in peace processes and decisions that affected them.
NANA EFFAH-APENTENG (Ghana), in briefing the Committee on the Conference on War-Affected Children in West Africa, said the Conference had devoted attention to the scope of the problem of war-affected children, the implementation of norms and standards already set by the international community for child protection, and to the complexities involved in the process of demobilization, rehabilitation and reintegration of those children.
He further stated that the Conference had adopted two documents at the end of its deliberations: the Accra Declaration on War-Affected Children in West Africa; and a Plan of Action for addressing the problem in the subregion. The Declaration recognized children as the guarantors of the future, as well as the need to strengthen regional initiatives for their security and well-being, among other things. The Plan of Action outlined a focused action-oriented agenda, aimed at protecting children from the scourge of war. It also included a proposal that an annual West African Week of Truce for War-Affected Children be observed to coincide with the Day of the African Child on 16 June.
Ambassador SAREVA, the Chef de Cabinet to the President of the General Assembly, said the General Assembly resolution was based on the premise that governments should take action to implement the Millennium Summit Declaration. It reinforced the need for an integrated and coordinated approach.
He further stated that the President of the General Assembly was convening and chairing monthly meetings with coordinators of all the events in an attempt to make them complementary. Topics addressed included civil society participation and how the outcomes of events should be reported back to the General Assembly. The United Nations system, as envisaged in the resolution, was prepared to assist Member States in implementing the Declaration. That would require coordination between all concerned, and there was a need for enhanced partnership between the United Nations, Members States and civil society.
ANGELA E.V. KING, Assistant Secretary-General, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, said that Beijing +5 had examined progress achieved and remaining obstacles affecting the girl child. The outcome document emphasized areas crucial for mapping the priorities of the world community in next few years. In the area of education, Beijing +5 emphasized closing the gender gap in primary education. It also included improved development of gender-sensitive curricula and the elimination of gender stereotypes in education materials, as well as emphasizing the importance of girls’ access to new technologies. HIV/AIDS was also discussed, focusing on affordable treatment for women and girls.
The Beijing +5 conference highlighted the need to criminalize all forms of violence against women and girls of all ages, she added. It also advocated development of effective strategies to combat trafficking and to address its root causes. The eradication of harmful practices, such as honour crimes and racially motivated crimes against girls, was also addressed, as well as the issue of women in armed conflict. The concept of gender mainstreaming was a potent method of ensuring gender equality among girls and boys.
JOHN CADDY of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) said that the Third United Nations Conference on Least Developed Countries was the first in a series of conferences. It would be a holistic conference, and it was being organized by all the agencies of the United Nations system. The conference had three tracks, the most important of which was individual country programmes. A second track was the global programme of action as an intergovernmental process. It set a wide range of targets for the international community, including five related to children.
The conference would have a number of themes, including governance, agriculture, investment, energy, transportation and telecommunications. The emphasis was on concrete initiatives and specific action, not on words. The holistic approach would also include civil society, parliamentarians and mayors from around the world, as well as the business community. Children would play an important role throughout the conference.
FREDERICK WEIBGEN, a representative of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), said the 1990 World Summit for Children had provided a frame of reference for a number of activities that could be seen as contributing to child welfare. Significantly, the nutrition goals of the Summit had been fully incorporated into the Global Plan of Action for Nutrition that had emerged from the 1992 FAO/World Health Organization (WHO)-sponsored International Conference on Nutrition.
He added that while most of FAO's efforts were not specifically directed at children, they had been designed to benefit children. He, therefore, noted with concern that the draft outcome document of the special session gave little emphasis to nutrition and even less attention to the issue of food security.
It was his organization's firm expectation that the outcome of the special session and the World Food Summit five years later would combine to create the conditions in which generation after generation of children would be well nourished and grow and develop to their full potential, he concluded.
Mr. LINDBLAD, the representative of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), said that 36 million people, including 1.5 million children, were currently living with HIV/AIDS, while 14 million children had been orphaned because of the pandemic. He said that the General Assembly, in recognizing the seriousness of the situation, had decided in November to convene a special session from 25 to 27 June. That represented a global commitment to combat the disease. However, because time was short, the preparatory committee had been meeting informally.
He added that it had been agreed that people living with AIDS, NGOs and civil society should participate in the special session. There was a direct link between the HIV/AIDS preparatory committee and this Committee, because half of the new HIV/AIDS infections were among young people between the ages of 15 and 24. Education played a crucial role in combating HIV/AIDS; yet, the education infrastructure in many countries had been devastated by the pandemic through the death of teachers, as well as through children missing school to take care of sick parents. In Africa, the orphan crisis had reached unprecedented proportions.
Mr. DAVID, of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that four regional intergovernmental meetings were being held in preparation for the Third World Conference on Racism. Three had taken place, and one would take place soon. They were key components of preparations for the World Conference. The preparatory events and written submissions would inform the final outcome. Children would receive emphasis during the preparations. Representatives of human rights treaty bodies were participants to the regional intergovernmental World Conference preparatory meetings.
The preparatory process for the conference and special session should pay special attention to the implementation of the rights of the child, he added. One of the main issues would be the situation of children in armed conflict. Racism was one of the current causes of armed conflict. The World Conference would address that issue. The Conference would also focus on vulnerable groups in need of special protection, such as migrants. Protecting children’s right to education could be important. The role that education could play in preventing racism could not be stressed enough. The High Commissioner had stressed that children should be a strong focus of the Conference and actively participate in it.
Mr. NIZAMUDDIN, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), said that the agenda at the International Conference on Population and Development +5 had five common areas, including the prevention of HIV/AIDs, as well as girls’ education. The World Summit for Children and the ICPD were closely linked. ICPD shared the goals of prevention of HIV/AIDS and increased awareness of reproductive health. The Conference emphasized people-centred development and the need to provide access to sexual health. One decade later, the world was undergoing new challenges. HIV/AIDS had reversed decades of gain. Girls were increasingly at risk. Gender was directly linked to reproductive health. Young people must be able to protect themselves from disease and exploitation. UNFPA was fully behind the preparatory committee’s goals.
Reporting to the Committee on the Special Session on Social Development, JOHN LANGMORE, Director, Division for Social Policy and Development of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, said that session had covered such issues as reduction in market turbulence, speedy implementation of debt relief and creating an enabling environment for development. There were nine commitments which included a global goal for poverty reduction. The importance of including poverty reduction as part of macro-economic policies was also discussed, as was the cost -- some $8 billion -- to provide basic education for children all over the world.
He added that the session had stressed the importance of increasing research on common diseases in developing countries and enhancing national and international resources for social development. It had also called for strengthening global governance by strengthening ECOSOC and had pointed out the social impact of sanctions on children. Participants further had agreed that prohibiting child labour, tackling gender inequality and giving special attention to women and children with disabilities in post-conflict environments should also be discussed. The session was important in setting the framework for the Committee's work.
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