High-Level Panel adopts Bali Communiqué

At the end of their meeting the High-Level Panel adopted the Bali Communiqué, which should be read alongside the Monrovia Communiqué, which includes a reference to sexual and reproductive health. 

The Bali meeting focused particularly on areas such as partnerships, the global environment and sustainable development, and less on social inclusion. The panel did, however, note that the population will peak at 9-10 billion in 2050. It also recognized the need for data availability and better accountability in measuring progress.

Expert Group Meeting on Population Dynamics and the Post-2015 Development Agenda

Among the meetings taking place in Bali in the run up to the High-Level Panel (HLP), an Expert Group Meeting on Population Dynamics and the Post-2015 Development Agenda was organized by UNFPA, in collaboration with the Government of Indonesia (BKKBN and UKP4) to develop concrete recommendations on “how to” address and harness population dynamics in relation to development objectives in the Post-2015 development agenda in general, and on priorities of the Asia-Pacific region in particular. Participants in the meeting included international and Indonesian experts from universities, research institutes and think tanks, relevant Indonesian Government institutions and selected Youth Organizations and CSOs that have strong backgrounds in population dynamics.

Based on the Outcome document of the Thematic Consultation on Population Dynamics and the Dhaka Declaration, the Expert Group adopted the Bali Statement as input into the HLP meeting process.

Global Civil Society Forum Communiqué

The Communiqué for the Global CSO Forum that met on 23-24 March in Bali includes several reference to sexual and reproductive health and rights, in addition to the references in the other outcome documents that have also gone forward to the High Level Saturday and Sunday, (See previous postings) thanks to the  collective efforts of APA, ASTRA, ARROW, DAWN, IPPF and IWHC, as well as other organizations. The Civil Society Communiqué was presented in the morning plenary at the HLP meeting on 25 March. 

“It states that gender equality must be central - including addressing violence against women and girls with and without disabilities, and guaranteeing sexual and reproductive health and rights. And thatgovernance starts at home, with women making decisions over their ownbodies, sexualities  and lives - sexual and reproductive rights arefundamental and must be guaranteed, while laws and policies that discriminate on the basis of gender, sexual orientation and gender identity must be repealed.”

Youth Multi-Stakeholders Meeting Communique

The Youth Multi-stakeholders Meeting in Bali, organized by Indonesian Future Leaders, ARROW and other partners including the YC. Representatives of many organizations working on sexual and reproductive health and rights were present such as IPPF, YPEER, CHOICE, China Youth Network, IWHC, Youth LEAD, Ugandan Young Positives, ARROW and of course Youth Coalition for Sexual and Reproductive Rights, provided one of the last few opportunities for young activists to make their voices heard before the report of the HLP is launched.  

As can be seen in the Communique from the meeting, participants in the meeting called the inclusion of comprehensive sexuality education and services for sexual and reproductive health and rights.

High Level Panel meets in Bali

The fourth meeting of the High Level Panel (HLP) is taking place in Bali, Indonesia.

25 March 2013 was the Stakeholder Outreach Day with a series of meetings involving civil society, youth, academia, the private sector, parliamentarians and other elected representatives, as well as global and regional governance institutions. Civil society interaction with the High Level Panel was through the Civil Society Roundtables coordinated through the Asia Working Group, a broad network of national, regional and international organizations and the Stakeholder Town Hall Meeting, which also involved the Stakeholder Groups.

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UN General Assembly Open Working Group (OWG) on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

The General Assembly Open Working Group (OWG) on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) held its first meeting on 14 -15 March 2013. It was called for in Future We Want, the outcome document of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio + 20) to establish ‘an inclusive and transparent intergovernmental process’, open to all stakeholders to develop global SDGs. The Group will report to the General Assembly’s 68^th session.

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UN Commission on the Status of Women adopts Agreed Conclusions on Violence Against Women

After long and hard negotiations, on Friday 15 March the UN Commission on the Status of Women at its 57^th Session adopted its Agreed Conclusions on Violence against Women. After the previous failure to get Agreed Conclusions on this critically important subject and also the failure to get Agreed Conclusions on the empowerment of rural women and their role in poverty and hunger eradication, development and current challenges in 2012, this was in itself a major achievement. Such Agreed Conclusions, however, were only reached because key concerns including prostitution, sexual orientation and intimate partner relations were set aside.

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Global Leadership Meeting on Population Dynamics in the Context of the Post-2015 Development Agenda, 12-13 March 2013

The Thematic Consultation Global Leadership Meeting on Population Dynamics was convened from 12-13 March 2013 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Attended by over 100 participants including over 50 government representatives, it focused on four mega-trends: high fertility and population growth; low fertility and population aging; migration and human mobility; and urbanization.

Six working sessions were held: On the first day, there were sessions on high fertility, population growth and large youth populations; and international migration and human mobility. On the second day, there were sessions on urbanization, cities and sustainable development; population aging and population decline; and the way forward for national, regional and global level action.

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Thematic Consultation on Post-2015 Development Agenda Consultation on Conflict, Violence and Disaster, 13 March, Helsinki, Finland

The high-level meeting of the Global Thematic Consultation on Conflict, Violence and Disaster in the Post-2015 Agenda took place on 13 March 2013, in Helsinki, Finland. Co-convened by the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the UN Peacebuilding Support Office (PBSO), the UN International Strategy for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) and the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and with support from the Government of Finland, it brought together some 120 leaders from civil society, government, the private sector, UN agencies and international organizations.

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Valerie DeFillipo appointed as Director of the Family Planning 2020 Partnership

“FP2020 was created to support the rights of an additional 120 million women and girls in the world's poorest countries to use contraceptive information, services, and supplies, without coercion or discrimination, by 2020, continuing the momentum started at the ground-breaking 2012 London Summit on Family Planning.
 
“Valerie DeFillipo brings technical family planning expertise, experience leading global multi-stakeholder partnerships, and a deep commitment to using FP2020 as a platform to strengthen existing structures providing family planning and contraceptives to vulnerable women and girls around the world. She is currently the President of the Friends of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).”

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