Welcome to the NZPPD information service, providing updates on NZPPD and other parliamentarian group activities, as well as the latest news on population and development.
In support of women’s political representation in the Solomon Islands
The Chair of NZPPD, Dr. Jackie Blue MP, was pleased to hear that at least 18 women are contesting the elections in the Solomon Islands on 4th August and issued a media release welcoming the news. Currently there are no female members of parliament in the Solomon Islands, and only one woman has ever been elected there. The Pacific region has the lowest number of female parliamentarians of any region in the world, which is concerning, as women’s political representation is important to ensure women’s issues are prioritised on the political agenda. Since the media release, it is now reported that 25 women will contest the elections.
Chair meets with Chief Executive of Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Dr. Jackie Blue MP, NZPPD Chair, met with John Allen, the Chief Executive of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade in July and briefed him about the maternal health situation in the Pacific and NZPPD’s report Making Maternal Health Matter. Dr. Blue explained how there is great global momentum for improving maternal health, but unfortunately the Pacific region is not a global priority, despite five women a day dying due to pregnancy or childbirth related causes in the region. New Zealand and Australia therefore have an important role to play in helping mothers in our Pacific neighbourhood.
NZPPD member appointed to Global Commission on HIV and the Law
NZPPD member Charles Chauvel MP has been appointed along with 14 other selected individuals from around the world to the Global Commission on HIV and the Law. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) with support from the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) launched the Global Commission on HIV and the Law in June to examine how legal environments impact on efforts to prevent, manage and treat HIV and AIDS. Punitive laws in many countries around the world have a negative impact on people living with HIV and AIDS accessing treatment and care and enjoying basic human rights. The commission aims to increase understanding of the impact of the legal environment and provide recommendations on how the law can support rather than hinder universal access to prevention, treatment and care.
Family Planning Conference 2010
New Zealand Family Planning is gearing up to host the Family Planning Conference 2010 in Wellington, New Zealand, in October. The conference provides an important opportunity for the latest national and international thinking and innovation in sexual and reproductive health to be shared with those interested and working in sexual and reproductive health. Four internationally-renowned keynote speakers will be attending, making the conference an opportunity to hear and learn from leaders in this field. Several abstracts on addressing reproductive health issues in the Pacific region have been received.
New UK Government prioritises women and family planning in aid programme
The new Secretary of State for International Development in the United Kingdom, Andrew Mitchell, has announced that women will be at the ‘front and centre’ of the UK’s aid programme and family planning will be at the heart of its measures to address women’s health in developing countries. “The international community has failed to assist millions of women by ignoring the complexities of why at least a third of a million women in the world’s poorest countries die during pregnancy and childbirth each year. For too long we’ve been trying to tackle the issue with one hand tied behind our backs”.
Microbicide gel effective in fight against HIV
At the XVIII International AIDS Conference in Vienna, Austria, in July, researchers shared a new scientific breakthrough in the fight against HIV. The Centre for the AIDS Programme of Research in South Africa announced that vaginal microbicide gel containing 1% of the AIDS drug tenofovir has been found to reduce the risk of women becoming infected with HIV during sex by 39%, and reduces the risk of women contracting genital herpes by 51%. If further research shows similar results, the microbicide gel could provide women with a defence against becoming infected with HIV from a sexual partner who refuses to use a condom.
UN Women is born
A new gender equality entity at the United Nations is being established as a result of a United Nations General Assembly resolution agreed to on 30th June. The new entity will be called UN Women and will merge four UN’s agencies, namely the UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), the Division for the Advancement of Women (DAW), the Office of the Special Adviser on Gender Issues, and the UN International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women (UN-INSTRAW). “By bringing together four parts of the UN system dedicated to women’s issues, Member States have created a much stronger voice for women and for gender equality at the global level,” said the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-Moon. Check out their new website http://www.unwomen.org/