Tashkent, 15 November 2011—United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) launches its flagship report, The State of World Population 2011. This year’s Report highlights an important milestone of the world reaching 7 billion people that was marked globally in October 2011.
“With planning and the right investments in people now—to empower them to make choices that are not only good for themselves, but also for our global commons—our world of 7 billion can have thriving sustainable cities, productive labour forces that fuel economies, and youth populations that contribute to the well-being of their societies,” says UNFPA Executive Director Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin in the foreword of the report, entitled People and Possibilities in a World of 7 Billion.
Globally, population has doubled since 1968 and grown by almost 40 per cent since reaching 5 billion in 1987, an event that led to the first World Population Day. Growth will continue at least until mid-century despite dramatic declines in the average number of children per woman, according to the UN Population Division.
Individual decisions determine global population growth. However, some 215 million women in developing countries lack access to effective family planning. Working to ensure that every child is wanted and every childbirth is safe will lead to smaller and stronger families and more opportunities for women.
People under 25 make up 43 per cent of the world’s population, but the percentage reaches 60 per cent in the least-developed countries. When young people can claim their right to health, education and decent working conditions, they become a powerful force for economic development and positive change.
The planet’s record population size can be viewed in many ways as a success for humanity because it means that people are living longer and more of our children are surviving worldwide, the report shows. But not everyone has benefited fr om this achievement or the higher quality of life that this implies. Great disparities exist among and within countries. Disparities in rights and opportunities also exist between men and women, girls and boys. Charting a path now to development that promotes equality, rather than exacerbates or reinforces inequalities, is more important than ever.
The 7 billion milestone “is a challenge, an opportunity and a call to action,” says the report. Along with launching event in Tashkent, the report has also been launched in more than 100 other cities worldwide.
“Today’s milestone is a reminder that we must act now,” said Dr. Osotimehin, adding that the Programme of Action of the 1994 Cairo International Conference on Population and Development and its call to enable individuals have the power to make their own reproductive decisions remain the best guides for the future.
The State of World Population 2011 is mainly a report from the field, wh ere demographers, policymakers, governments, civil society and individuals are grappling with population trends ranging from ageing to rapidly rising numbers of young people, from high population growth rates to shrinking populations, and from high rates of urbanization to rising international migration. The countries featured in this report are China, Egypt, Ethiopia, Finland, India, Mexico, Mozambique, Nigeria and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.
The launching of The State of World Population Report in Uzbekistan precedes the two-day conference “Population of Uzbekistan: 20 Years of Independent Development” that will take place on 16-17 November 2011. This conference is being organized by UNFPA in partnership with Uzbekistan’s Institute of Economics of Academy of Science and Institute for Macroeconomic Forecasting and Research. It will gather demography experts, representatives of government institutions, academia and public organizations from all over Uzbekistan to review and discuss current demographic trends and prospects in the country.
UN Population Fund works in Uzbekistan since 1993 and is currently implementing its third Country Programme (2010-2015). Within its component targeting population and development issues, the Fund assists Uzbekistan in improving capacity of the Government at central and local level to collect, analyze and use population data for formulation of socio-economic development strategies.
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UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, is an international development agency that promotes the right of every woman, man and child to enjoy a life of health and equal opportunity. UNFPA supports countries in using population data for policies and programmes to reduce poverty and to ensure that every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is safe, every young person is free of HIV/AIDS, and every girl and woman is treated with dignity and respect.
The Report is accessible here: www.unfpa.org/swp/
For more information, please contact:
For more information, please contact:
Aziza Askarova, UNFPA ( 998 71) 120 6899, 281 5881/83
Bobir Komilov, UN Information Center (998 71) 120 3450, ext 122
