The Ministry of Planning and Economic Development, in collaboration with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), on July 21, 2023 convened a stakeholders’ consultation to validate progress on the implementation of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) Program of Action and the Addis Ababa Declaration on Population and Development (AADPD).

The ICPD Programme of Action was adopted in 1994 at a ground breaking conference where world leaders articulated a bold vision which placed individual human rights, capabilities and dignity at the centre of development. The AADPD was adopted by African Ministers at the Africa Regional Conference on Population and Development held in Addis Ababa in October 2013, and endorsed by African Heads of State at the African Union Executive Council in 2014. The AADPD provides Africa-specific guidance on the ICPD, and aims to harness a demographic dividend, advance human rights and meet sustainable development goals.

With the 30th anniversary of the ICPD and the 10th anniversary of the AADPD in 2024, the consultation was an opportunity to take stock of progress, reaffirm commitments to the ideals of the ICPD Agenda, and shape the narrative around key ICPD issues for the remainder of the SDG period and beyond.

Speaking at the event, UNFPA Deputy Representative, Sibeso Mululuma, commended Sierra Leone for the progress made in improving the health and wellbeing of its people including significant reduction in maternal mortality. She observed that the promise of the ICPD was yet to be fully realised as many women and girls continue to be left behind, while the socio-economic impacts of COVID-19, climate change and global economic instability could reverse the significant gains so far made.

Ms. Mululuma underscored the need for urgent and collective action to ensure that every individual, especially women and girls left furthest behind, are able to exercise their rights, noting that “the cost of inaction is simply too high: more women and girls dying, more unintended pregnancies and child marriages, more pregnant girls dropping out of school, and the potential of individuals and societies wasted.”

Acting Development Secretary in the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development, Mr. Bai M. Thuray, said that the government remained committed to the reduction of maternal mortality, enhancing youth skills development and employment, gender equity and empowerment in line with the AADPD, Agenda 2063 and the SDG Agenda.

Mr Thuray commended UNFPA’s technical and financial support to the country, especially leading to the validation process. “I take this opportunity to thank you all for our collective gains, and to entreat you to double our efforts, to consolidate gains the report will present, and to come up with recommendations to the challenges of the last ten years of the implementation of the AADPD.”

The session was chaired by Dr. Robert Tamba Moikowa, Director of Service Delivery and Performance Management in the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development.