It is the 15th anniversary since the Cairo International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in 1994 at which, amongst other things, the Lao PDR agreed that all couples and individuals have the basic human right to not only decide freely and responsibly the number and spacing of their children, but also to have the information, education and means to do so.

World Population Day this year has the theme of investing in women is a smart choice that serves to focus attention on this identifiable and accessible avenue to counter the negative effects of the global economic crisis and aid poverty reduction.  Members of the Lao Government, representatives from the United Nations, Lao unions, the development community and dignitaries gathered at Lao Plaza Hotel in Vientiane today to reassert their commitment to achieving Millennium Development Goals (MDG’s) and universal access to Reproductive Health.

In the midst of the worst global economic recession in generations, a country in crisis looks to its leaders to fix both its problems and its spirit.  It was at this meeting leaders renewed their emphasis to seeking solutions and ways to meet MDG’s and in particular MDG5 - maternal health – and the critical importance of family planning in the fight against maternal deaths.

During her speech at the World Population Day Event, Ms Mieko Yabuta, Representative for UNFPA, said that, “MDG5 is often called the heart of the MDG’s, because if it fails, the other MDG’s will too. MDG5 outlines three basic interventions necessary to improve maternal health: family planning; skilled attendance at the time of birth; universal access to timely emergency obstetric care”.

She went on to say, “Every day in the country more than 2 women die because of pregnancy and childbirth and 80% of women deliver without a medically trained birth attendant.  The reduction of maternal mortality is one of the important goals of this country’s 7th five year National Socio-Economic Development Plan”.

Lao PDR’s economy is undergoing rapid transition and dynamic change, fuelled by a natural resources boom, which brings both benefits and risks that affect women and men differently.  The challenge for Lao PDR is to ensure that economic gains are balanced by equitable social economic development of women and men and the environmental sustainability on which the livelihoods of many ethnic groups depend.

Ms Yabuta reiterated the United Nations Secretary General’s call for decision makers to, “…protect women’s ability to earn income, keep their daughters in school and obtain reproductive health information and services, including voluntary family planning. There can be no better investment on this day or any other”.