NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov 15 – The Nairobi Summit on International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD25) concluded on Thursday with partners making commitments to transform the world by ending all maternal deaths, gender-based violence and harmful practices against women and girls by 2030.
Delegates who attended the three-day conference also pledged to promote family planning.
The Summit mobilized more than 1,200 commitments from around the world, including billions of dollars in pledges from public and private sector partners.
More than 160 countries made their voluntary commitments.
In his remarks, Deputy President William Ruto affirmed the government’s undertaking to end maternal deaths and harmful practices on women and girls within the next decade.
“I am encouraged by the consensus that has emerged that advancing women’s rights’ and wellbeing is at the centre of unlocking the social power that is needed to drive positive economic and political transformation.”
The DP further stated the government will embark on the unfinished business of the 1994 Cairo plan of action, much more realistic.
“We realize that the strength of our commitments to the ICPD plan of action is commensurate with the speed of attainment of the Sustainable development Goals. As President Kenyatta stated during the opening of the summit, we shall accelerate progress in our commitments by packaging priority actions and programs that guarantee concrete outcomes,” the DP affirmed.
The DP further assures that the commitments made are intrinsic components of Kenya’s constitutional dispensation and national social economic transformation blueprint.
“The implementation of our commitments is coordinated through our National Council on Population and Development (NCPD) which led the technical committee that prepared this summit and our implementation plan.”
“The committee will also champion the tracking of the implementation and report annually to the president,” he added.
United Nations Populations Fund (UNFPA) Executive Director Natalia Kanem urged governments to double their efforts to further gains under the ICPD framework.
“The Nairobi Summit represents a renewed, re-energized vision and community working together to act and deliver. Together we will make the next ten years a decade of action and results for women and girls, keeping their rights and choices at the centre of everything we do,” she said.
NCPD Director General Josephine Kibaru-Mbae noted that the Summit clears a roadmap of actions to advance the ICPD agenda and transform the world for women and girls.
“These are multi-sectoral commitments which need to be translated into actual activities. As a country, our intention is to ensure that these are prioritized within the different sectors whether Health or Gender Based Violence (GBV) etc, so that whatever funding that is availed by the government, they are the priority activities to be funded.”
The Summit co-convened by the governments of Kenya and Denmark within partnership UNFPA and the United Nations sexual reproductive health agency, unveiled critical new data on the cost of achieving ICPD goals.
It also raised the voices of the marginalized communities, youth and grassroots advocates, who were able to directly engage Heads of State and policymakers about how to realize the rights and heath of all people.
The research showed the price tag to achieve “three transformative results” within the next decade. The total cost to the world would be USD 264 billion according to the analysis by UNFPA and the Johns Hopkins University.
Several governments, the European Commission as well as private sectors and many other organizations announced that they will mobilize some USD 8 billion in combined new pledges.
“There will be no ICPD50. Women and girls around the world have waited long enough to have rights and choices,” said Denmark’s Special Envoy for ICPD25 Ambassador Ib Petersen.
“Looking toward 2030, we now enter a decade of delivery during which we will talk and hold all of us to account for the commitments we made in Nairobi.”
Over 9,500 delegates from more than 170 countries took part in the conference, which established a shared agenda to complete the ICPD Program of Action.
