BANGKOK, Thailand – The UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) Members and Associate Members from the Pacific region, concluded their participation in the Seventh Asian and Pacific Population Conference (APPC7) held from 15 to 17 November 2023 in Bangkok, where they reaffirmed commitment to the implementation of the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) Programme of Action and the 2013 Asian and Pacific Ministerial Declaration on Population and Development, through their respective National Statements as well as notable ‘Group Statements’ delivered several times on behalf of all Pacific countries.
APPC7 was convened by UN ESCAP, in partnership with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). The presence of the Pacific small island development states (SIDS) in the 7th Conference was prominent. With financial support of UNFPA Pacific, a total of 37 delegates from 11 Pacific countries travelled to Bangkok to participate in APPC7 - Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Niue, Palau, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu. At the beginning of the proceedings, the Head of the Tuvalu delegation, H.E. Tuvalu High Commissioner to Fiji, Dr. Eselealofa Apinelu, was elected as the second Vice Chair of the Conference.
All these 11 Pacific nations delivered their National Statements, and shared their respective status of the progress made towards the implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action and the related Ministerial Declaration that was adopted at the previous 6th APPC a decade ago, also discussing challenges faced in the last 10 years, and suggested ways forward - many common in the Pacific, others unique to their country contexts.
The collective voice of the Pacific was amplified throughout the three days of the Conference as the Pacific countries got together and delivered five ‘Group Statements.’ On behalf of all the 14 Pacific countries served by UNFPA Pacific, Cook Islands’ Associate Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hon. Mr. Tingika Elikana delivered the Pacific group statement at the Plenary. This was followed by a Pacific joint statement for each of the four thematic discussions. Marshall Islands’ Minister of Culture and Internal Affairs, Hon. Ms. Kitlang Kabua spoke for the whole Pacific on ‘population dynamics, sustainable development and climate change,’ Samoa’s Associate Finance Minister, Hon. Mr. Magele Sekati Fiaui on “sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights,’ Solomon Islands’ Minister of National Planning and Development Coordination, Hon. Mr. Rexson Ramofafia on “inequalities and social exclusion and rights,” and again Cook Islands Hon. Minister Elikana on ‘partnership and regional cooperation.’
The group statement reaffirmed the Pacific’s unwavering commitment to the 1994 ICPD Program of Action and the 2013 Asia Pacific Ministerial Declaration, in line with the 2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific and its Implementation Plan which had just been endorsed by the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders held in the previous week in Rarotonga. Since the last 6th APPC, many of the Pacific island countries have integrated and aligned population dynamics with their national sustainable development strategies and policies. Some have put in place dedicated multi-sectoral national population policies and RMNCAH (reproductive, maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health) policies as well.
Nevertheless, many of these Pacific countries shared at APPC7 that they are facing challenges that are jeopardizing the full realization of the ICPD promises. These obstacles include increasing climate change impacts, high vulnerability to health pandemics such as COVID-19, in addition to chronic issues such as “dis-economies of scale” in production, exchange of goods and delivery of services, including sexual and reproductive health for ending unmet need for family planning, reducing teenage pregnancies, and eradicating preventable maternal deaths, as well as addressing the rampant gender-based violence in the Pacific. The remoteness from major international markets, limited financial resources and human capital, rising inequality and youth unemployment, are compounded by emigration and brain drain, non-communicable diseases, as well as shortage of quality disaggregated data. The Pacific member states called on the international community to help mobilize resources to address these challenges.
Chosen as a discussant in the High-Level Panel preceding the plenary debate on Day 1, the Head of the Vanuatu delegation, Director of Women's Affairs, Ms. Rothina Ilo Noka, highlighted the importance of addressing the nexus between climate, humanitarian and development actions by referring to the Government’s ongoing response efforts to the large-scale tropical cyclones, showcasing the first-ever “Women and Girls Friendly Spaces” established in the cyclone-stricken Tanna Island with UNFPA Pacific’s support.
UNFPA Pacific provided technical and financial assistance to the Pacific countries for their preparations leading up to this APPC7 at ESCAP, including organizing joint preparatory meetings among all Pacific delegates. The pre-briefing held on the eve of the Conference on 14 November was also joined by the Head of UNFPA delegation to APPC7, UN Assistant Secretary-General and UNFPA Deputy Executive Director (Programme), Ms. Diene Keita, and UNFPA’s new Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific, Mr. Pio Smith. Member States’ bilateral meetings with UNFPA DED Keita were also organized, including with the Samoan delegation.
UNFPA Pacific also assisted civil society organisations from the Pacific to attend APPC7 in Bangkok, including the Pacific Disability Forum and Medical Services Pacific (MSP), Fiji.
“The common and diverse needs of the Pacific small island countries must not be neglected. In achieving the ICPD agenda, we must not leave anyone behind, and no country should be left behind regardless of its population size,” said Iori Kato, UNFPA Director for the Pacific and Representative in Fiji, who accompanied 11 Pacific countries’ delegates and CSOs to APPC7, along with UNFPA Pacific Assistant Representative Lorna Rolls.
The 7th APPC was concluded on 17 November 2023. The Chair’s summary will be finalized within a week or so by participating ESCAP member states. It will be transmitted along with all the other regional consultations’ reports to the UN Commission on Population and Development (CPD) at its 57th session in April/May 2024. This CPD57 marks the 30th anniversary of the International Conference on Population and Development, where Member States will discuss the status of the implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action in the last three decades, leading up to the “Summit of the Future” in September 2024 in which Member States will start deliberating on the ‘Post-2030’ development agenda.
