Introduction:
A Commission on Population and Development (UNCPD) was established by the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) in its resolution 3 (III) of 3 October 1946. The UN General Assembly (UNGA) , the ECOSOC and the Commission on Population and Development (CPD) constitutes a three-tiered intergovernmental mechanism that plays the primary role in the follow-up to the implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) . The CPD as a functional commission monitors, reviews and assesses the implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action at the national, regional and international levels and advices the ECOSOC and the UNGA.
The Commission is composed of 47 Member States elected by the Economic and Social Council for a period of four years on the basis of geographic distribution. It meets once a Year at the UN Headquarters in New York. Listed below are PPD member countries who are members of the current CPD (with expiry dates of membership):
Morocco (2020), Nigeria (2017), South Africa (2018), Uganda (2020)
Bangladesh (2017), China (2018), Pakistan (2018), Philippines (2019)
Mexico (2021)
The Fiftieth Session of the CPD
For PPD member countries, the CPD sessions are of utmost significance as it primarily deliberates on the global population trends, emerging issues relating to population at large and specific emerging issues relating to population dynamics and their significance for the member countries. The session brings together national policymakers, high ranking government officials, UN agencies and world class experts on population and development issues to deliberate on the agenda.
The plenary meetings of the upcoming session of CPD will take place from 3 to 7 April. The provisional agenda and the note on Organization of work is attached to this note. All documents for the session have already been posted on the UN Population Division’s website at www.unpopulation.org
There are three substantive documents circulated as working papers for the Commission session. The documents are introduced below with a short summary:
- Document – E/CN.9/2017/2
SG’s report on ‘Changing population age structures and sustainable development.’
In its decision 2016/101, the Commission on Population and Development decided that the special theme for its fiftieth session, in 2017, would be “Changing population age structures and sustainable development”. This present report is intended to inform the Commission’s deliberations on the theme, as part of the Commission’s ongoing follow-up and review of chapter VI, on population growth
This report provides a review of the typical changes in the age distribution of the human population that are taking place both globally and across a wide range of countries and regions. Such changes, which are influenced by various social and economic factors, have important implications for sustainable development. The report also serves to document the key trends and international differences in changing age structures, and the critical role of population policies, and of policies related to health, education, employment and social protection, in managing the associated challenges and enhancing the potential social and economic benefits of such changes.
- Document- E/CN.9/2017/3
SG’s report on ‘Monitoring of population programmes, focusing on changing population age structures and sustainable development, in the context of the full implementation of the ICPD’
The period from 2016 to 2030 will be marked by major changes in age structure in countries around the world, including a steady increase in the median age. The differences in age structures among countries will rise to historically high levels during this period, underscoring the importance of countries understanding and responding to their national age structure and trends to ensure optimal policies and programmes for national development. Changing age structure is a central aspect of the implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development, which emphasizes individual life transitions and trajectories over the course of demographic transitions. Governments have prioritized efforts to advance progress in sustainable development through demographic dividends, which offer a strategic basis for focusing on and prioritizing investments in empowerment, including through sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights, education and employment, linked to age structure.
This report, prepared by the United Nations Population Fund, provides numerous examples of policies and programmes reflecting the thematic pillars of the International Conference on Population and Development beyond 2014 — dignity and human rights; health, place and mobility; governance and accountability; and sustainability — into which Governments are integrating changes in age structure to achieve the aims of the Programme of Action and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
- Document E/CN.9/2017/4
SG’s report on ‘Flow of financial resources for assisting in the further implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development’
A review of available data on resource flows to health and population matters shows a considerable increase in such flows over recent decades. However, shortfalls in the quality and coverage of the data persist.
The present report, which was prepared by the United Nations Population Fund, builds on the information contained in the previous report of the Secretary-General (E/CN.9/2016/5). It provides further discussion of select methodological difficulties encountered in estimating such resource flows, in particular the challenges of categorization and the difficulty of standardizing the estimates of national resource flows. These shortfalls undermine the reproducibility and reliability of estimated resource allocations to implement the Programme of Action, and thus a revised approach is recommended.
The estimation of resource flows has much to gain from specificity in topic and theme, as a major limitation of the recent estimations has been the overlap and ambiguity between categories of population assistance. Limiting the scope of the exercise to specific dimensions of sexual and reproductive health may improve the quality of estimates, but does not avoid the difficulty of standardizing estimates at the national level. National health accounts, through which all available resources, including household expenditures, are accounted for under the leadership of a national ministry, are increasingly being generated and valued by many governments. Estimates of resource flows in support of sexual and reproductive health may fruitfully be drawn from such accounts. Further efforts to estimate resource allocations for the implementation of the Programme of Action cover multiple themes and categories and should be reconsidered in the light of the methodological concerns raised, as well as in the context of emerging efforts to cost and finance the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The provisional agenda of the session and the proposed organization of work are contained in documents E/CN.9/2017/1 and E/CN.9/2017/L.1. Access links are given below: