Achieving universal access to reproductive health care

[MountainLaurel]

World leaders resolved to achieve universal access to reproductive health by 2015, promote gender equality and end discrimination against women, as they ended their three-day 2005 World Summit on Friday night.

They made those commitments by adopting the Summit Outcome recommended by the General Assembly. By the terms of their agreement, the leaders would integrate the goal of access to reproductive health into national strategies to attain the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to end poverty, reduce maternal death, promote gender equality and combat HIV/AIDS.

“Five years after the Millennium Declaration, the world has reaffirmed the need to keep gender equality, HIV/AIDS and reproductive health at the top of its agenda,” said Thoraya Ahmed Obaid, Executive Director of UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund. “This outcome is a success for millions of women, men and young people all over the world, whose appeals have been heard. We must now focus our energy on fulfilling the commitments made by world leaders.”

“The leaders' resolve to bring reproductive health to all has confirmed the vision of the agenda adopted at the 1994 Cairo International Conference on Population and Development,” said Ms. Obaid. “UNFPA looks forward to working with governments to expand access to comprehensive reproductive health services such as family planning, skilled attendance at birth, emergency obstetric care and the prevention and treatment of sexually transmitted infections, including HIV/AIDS.”

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