News Update: Budget Stalemates, UNFPA Funding & Upcoming AIDS Conference
May 1, 2004This summer promises to be a busy one. The situation in Iraq, the political conventions and the Olympics are just some of the events likely to dominate the news. However, there will be a number of other newsworthy events related to foreign aid and global health in which PAI will be actively involved:
The FY 2005 Budget Stalemate on Capitol Hill
Heading into the Fourth of July recess, Congress has yet to reach agreement on a joint budget resolution that would determine the size of the federal budget for fiscal year 2005. Very tight budget constraints will make it difficult to pass many of the thirteen annual appropriations bills up for review. This means that many bills—including the Foreign Operations bill and its provisions for funding for international family planning and reproductive health programs—are likely to be a target of budget reductions in order to fund more politically popular domestic programs during an election year.
To stay up-to-date on the proceedings to pass a 2005 budget resolution, visit PAI’s Legislative Information Center: http://capwiz.com/pai/home/
Decision on UNFPA Funding Expected…Soon
This month, Secretary of State Colin Powell is likely to announce the fate of United States funding for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). “Not more than” $34 million has been appropriated in the omnibus bill for the Fund, but U.S. funding again hinges on a presidential determination as to whether UNFPA is in violation of the Kemp-Kasten amendment. The prevailing opinion is that President Bush will again deny U.S. funding to the organization.
The Countdown Continues — Commemorations of the 10-Year Anniversary of the International Consensus on Population and Development
This year marks the tenth anniversary of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), at which 179 countries pledged to make reproductive health services available to all by 2015. This international consensus comprised a 20-year plan to improve reproductive health and women’s status, while also slowing population growth. Consensus was also reached on the funds needed to provide such basic reproductive health services as family planning and maternity care in poorer countries, estimated at $17 billion for the year 2000.
Around the world, sexual and reproductive health and rights advocates are engaged in a series of activities marking the “ICPD at ten,” some of which are mentioned below:
Will the U.S. Delegation Disrupt the Economic Commission for Latin America
and the Caribbean (ECLAC) Meeting in Puerto Rico this Month?
This month’s meeting, scheduled for June 29 and 30, is the third and final of a series of meetings organized by ECLAC to review the progress of implementing the ICPD plan. At the two prior meetings, all delegations, with the lone exception of the United States, voted to reaffirm the plan (also known as the Programme of Action or PoA). Advocates are fearful that the U.S. delegation will continue its attempts to thwart the proceedings of this month’s meeting.
Global Roundtable to Assess and Advance Progress Toward Achieving ICPD Goals
More than 600 of the world’s leading economists, government officials, sexual and reproductive health and rights advocates and others will convene late this summer in London for a Global Roundtable to assess country progress in achieving ICPD goals. As part of the collaborative initiative, Countdown 2015: Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights for All, the Global Roundtable will provide a forum for identifying challenges and mapping out new strategies for realizing the objectives agreed to in Cairo in 1994. The Roundtable will also feature the release of the Countdown 2015 magazine. With interviews, articles, case studies and graphics, the magazine will provide a full picture of the state of sexual and reproductive health in 2004.
A Mother’s Promise the World Must Keep: Advocates Request Past Due ICPD Money from Congress
On July 8th, co-sponsors of the Mother’s Promise campaign will present Congress with a “bill” for the amount past due/owed by the United States for its share of fulfilling the ICPD Programme of Action. The event will include a press conference and luncheon on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. Two members of Congress will be presented with an actual ‘Cairo Bill’ during the press conference and advocates will share research that illustrates why, even at such an unsettled period in our country’s history, it is imperative for the U.S. government to keep its promise of financial support made at ICPD in 1994. Advocates in a number of European countries, including the United Kingdom and Germany, have ‘Cairo Bill’ events planned for July 1st.
A Mother’s Promise is a coordinated campaign co-sponsored by a diverse coalition of advocates to demonstrate American support for the reaffirmation of the ICPD Programme of Action. A major goal of the campaign is the draw attention to the fact that the U.S., the world’s wealthiest nation, and other countries are not keeping the promises of financial support they made at the 1994 conference in Cairo.
To read about the U.S. delegation’s work behind the scenes at ECLAC’s March Meeting, read: http://www.womensenews.org/article.cfm/dyn/aid/1749/context/cover/
For more information about ECLAC, visit their website: http://www.eclac.org/celade/
To learn more about Countdown 2015, the Global Roundtable and the magazine, visit: http://www.countdown2015.org
Read more about the A Mother’s Promise Campaign at: http://www.ppfa.org/promise/home.asp
International AIDS Conference in Bangkok
An increased number of international family planning and reproductive health advocates from the U.S. will be attending this year’s conference in an effort to publicize the fact that HIV/AIDS is a reproductive health issue. While President Bush has stated on record that he wants to spearhead the global battle against HIV/AIDS, his reinstatement of the Global Gag Rule has caused many countries being devastated by AIDS to lose ground in their battle against the pandemic. In many cases, assistance has all but disappeared in countries that have relied on family planning clinics and programs to distribute the majority of condoms because of the U.S. funding restrictions.
Members of Congress are scheduled to attend the conference and will participate in events for press, including a press conference for media in Bangkok and an audio press briefing for U.S. media not at the conference.
According to a June 6 editorial in the Baltimore Sun, budget concerns have caused the Bush administration to decrease the size of the official U.S. delegation for this year’s conference from 236 to 50. The Administration estimates that $3 million will be saved by decreasing the size of the delegation and have stated that the money could be better spent on combating the disease. The Administration’s statement, however, does nothing to explain why the president is having such a difficult time gaining congressional support for the Presidential Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).
For more information about the conference and related media information, visit the conference website: http://www.aids2004.org
To read the Baltimore Sun editorial, go to: http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/bal-ed.aids06jun06,0,5061254.story
Countries with High Percentages of Young People Face Increased Risk of Civil Conflict
Recent news reports have highlighted the fact that countries with high proportions of young people and poverty seem to face an increased risk of deadly civil conflict. New reports from PAI and the Center for Global Development have each concluded that countries with high proportions of young people along with poverty, rapidly growing cities, an increasing HIV/AIDS prevalence and a scarcity of natural resources face a significantly higher risk of deadly civil conflict.
Briefings and meetings to discuss report findings have been well attended by policymakers and members of the diplomatic, intelligence and military communities. More events are scheduled both in the U.S. and abroad during the coming months.
To read PAI’s report, The Security Demographic: Population and Civil Conflict After the Cold War, visit:
http://www.populationaction.org/Publications/Reports/The_Security_Demographic/Summary.shtml
Also read PAI’s op ed in the International Herald Tribune at: http://www.iht.com/articles/131999.html
Population Action International (PAI) works to improve individual well-being and preserve global resources by mobilizing political and financial support for population, family planning and reproductive health policies and programs.
