World Population Day 2013, celebration on July 11

2013 Theme: Focus is on Adolescent Pregnancy

 
As the world population edged to 7 billion people in 2011 (up from 2.5 billion in 1950), it has had profound implications for development. A world of 7 billion is both a challenge and an opportunity with implications on sustainability, urbanization, access to health services and youth empowerment.

In 1989, in its decision 89/46, the Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme recommended that, in order to focus attention on the urgency and importance of population issues in the context of overall development plans and programmes and the need to find solutions for these issues, 11 July should be observed by the international community as World Population Day.

About 16 million girls under age 18 give birth each year.

Another 3.2 million undergo unsafe abortions.

The vast majority – 90 per cent — of the pregnant adolescents in the developing world are married. But for far too many of these girls, pregnancy has little to do with informed choice.

Often it is a consequence of discrimination, rights violations (including child marriage), inadequate education or sexual coercion.

On 2013 World Population Day, we raise awareness of the issue of adolescent pregnancy in the hopes of delivering a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe, and every young person’s potential is fulfilled.

The unprecedented decrease in mortality that began to accelerate in the more developed parts of the world in the nineteenth century and expanded to all the world in the twentieth century is one of the major achievements of humanity. By one estimate, life expectancy at birth increased from 30 to 67 years between 1800 and 2005, leading to a rapid growth of the population: from 1 billion in 1810 to over 7 billion in 2012.

The Population Division collaborates closely with the agencies, funds, programmes and bodies of the United Nations system in the implementation of the work programme on population and in the follow-up to the International Conference on Population and Development. United Nations missions, national Government offices, United Nations offices, researchers, media representatives and the public regularly consult the Population Division regarding population estimates and projections, and information and analyses on population and development issues.

At its thirty-eighth session (E/2007/24), the Statistical Commission requested the United Nations Statistics Division and other international agencies to increase their technical assistance to national statistical offices in order to strengthen national capacity for the implementation of the 2010 World Programme on Population and Housing Censuses. In addition, the Commission requested countries to begin implementation of the revised Principles and Recommendations for Population and Housing Censuses.

UNFPA works with many partners, both within and outside the United Nations system, including Governments, non-governmental organizations, civil society, faith-based organizations, religious leaders and others, to achieve its mission. To better respond to local needs, UNFPA increasingly devotes resources to country-led efforts, placing emphasis on country-focused and country-led implementation to achieve improved results, at the same time addressing mutual accountability and strengthening harmonization and alignment.

Secretary-General’s Message for 2013

As a staunch advocate of the education, health and rights of girls and an enduring believer in the power of young women to transform our world, I welcome the focus of this year’s World Population Day on adolescent pregnancy. This sensitive topic demands global attention.

Far too many of the estimated 16 million teenage girls who give birth each year never had the opportunity to plan their pregnancy. Complications from pregnancy and childbirth can cause grave disabilities, such as obstetric fistula, and are the leading cause of death for these vulnerable young women. Adolescent girls also face high levels of illness, injury and death due to unsafe abortion.

To address these problems, we must get girls into primary school and enable them to receive a good education through their adolescence. When a young girl is educated, she is more likely to marry later, delay childbearing until she is ready, have healthier children, and earn a higher income.

We must also provide all adolescents with age-appropriate, comprehensive education on sexuality. This is especially important to empowering young women to decide when and if they wish to become mothers.

In addition, we must provide comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services that cover family planning and the prevention and treatment of sexually transmitted infections, including HIV. And we must guarantee the maternal health services that women need.

When we devote attention and resources to the education, health and wellbeing of adolescent girls, they will become an even greater force for positive change in society that will have an impact for generations to come.

On this World Population Day, let us pledge to support adolescent girls to realize their potential and contribute to our shared future.

AFRICA

“This year’s theme for World Population Day is teen pregnancy so it is disturbing to note that a lot of young people could feel discouraged from seeking out family planning and reproductive health services as a result of the costs charged on these services, no matter how minimal,” said Mr. Adebayo. “Therefore, removing the cost barriers to enhance access for young people is paramount.”

ASIA

Today, an overcrowded planet of some 7.1 billion people marks World Population Day, and with an ever growing number of teenagers giving birth, the U.N. has decided that the focus of this World Population Day will be adolescent pregnancy. At present, the highest concentration of young people is found in India. With an average age of just 29, the country is home to 300 million people below the age of 25.

Come 2028, it will also be the world’s most populous nation.

For these reasons, TIME takes a look at the state of sexual and reproductive health and rights in India. Sexual education, the tragedy of unsafe abortions and the unmet need for contraceptives will be examined in two parts. If the future of population management lies in the young, then the focus should fall on the world’s youngest country.

EUROPE

After 13 years in power, a sense of chronic disappointment hangs over the Labour administration.

Yesterday, another of the Government’s shameful failures was exposed: the bankruptcy of its policy to tackle Britain’s awful record as western Europe’s teenage pregnancy capital.

With typical fanfare, Tony Blair announced in 1999 that his government had set a target to slash in half the number of teen pregnancies by 2012.
But new figures released yesterday exposed Labour’s disastrous lack of success in meeting this goal.

A staggering 40,000 — or 40 per 1,000 — under-18s still fall pregnant in Britain each year, a pitiful improvement on 1998, when the figure was 46.6 per 1,000.

Teenage pregnancy is pregnancy in human females under the age of 20 when the pregnancy ends. A pregnancy can take place before menarche (the first menstrual period), which signals the possibility of fertility, but usually occurs after menarche. In healthy, well-nourished girls, menarche normally takes place around the ages 12 or 13. The prevalence of teenage pregnancy depends on a number of personal and societal factors.

Teenage pregnancy rates vary between countries because of differences in levels of sexual activity, marriage among teenagers, general sex education provided and access to affordable contraceptive options. Worldwide, teenage pregnancy rates range from 143 per 1000 in some sub-Saharan African countries to 2.9 per 1000 in South Korea.

In the United States 82% of pregnancies in those between 15 and 19 are unplanned.

Pregnant teenagers face many of the same obstetrics issues as women in their 20s and 30s. There are however, additional medical concerns for mothers younger than 15.

For mothers between 15 and 19, risks are associated more with socioeconomic factors than with the biological effects of age. However, research has shown that the risk of low birth weight is connected to the biological age itself, as it was observed in teen births even after controlling for other risk factors (such as utilization of antenatal care etc.).

In developed countries, teenage pregnancies are associated with many social issues, including lower educational levels, higher rates of poverty, and other poorer life outcomes in children of teenage mothers. Teenage pregnancy in developed countries is usually outside of marriage, and carries a social stigma in many communities and cultures. Many studies and campaigns have attempted to uncover the causes and limit the numbers of teenage pregnancies.

Among OECD developed countries, the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand have the highest level of teenage pregnancy, while Japan and South Korea have the lowest in 2001. The latest data from the United States shows that the states with the highest teenage birthrate are Mississippi, New Mexico and Arkansas while the states with the lowest teenage birthrate are New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Vermont.

Several studies have examined the socioeconomic, medical, and psychological impact of pregnancy and parenthood in teens.

Life outcomes for teenage mothers and their children vary; other factors, such as poverty or social support, may be more important than the age of the mother at the birth. Many solutions to counteract the more negative findings have been proposed. Teenage parents who can rely on family and community support, social services and child-care support are more likely to continue their education and get higher paying jobs as they progress with their education.

EPIDEMIC is driving the need for ‘drastic measures’, such as the following “straight talk” media campaign in NYC.

The New York Human Resources Administration launched a new ad campaign this week that uses “straight talk” in an effort to prevent teen pregnancy. The ads feature images of sad-looking children alongside messages like “Honestly, Mom … Chances are he won’t stay with you. What happens to me?” and “I’m twice as likely not to graduate high school because you had me as a teen.” READ MORE

Let’s all Take Action to realizes the ‘effect’ of our behavior; and truly dig deep to find the ’cause’ for this pandemic in our world today: TEEN PREGNANCY. [ A pandemic (from Greek πᾶν pan “all” + δῆμος demos “people”) is an epidemic of infectious disease that has spread through human populations across a large region; for instance multiple continents, or even worldwide. A widespread endemic disease that is stable in terms of how many people are getting sick from it is not a pandemic. Further, flu pandemics generally exclude recurrences of seasonal flu. Throughout history there have been a number of pandemics, such as smallpox and tuberculosis. More recent pandemics include the HIV pandemic and the H1N1 pandemics of 1918 and 2009.]

Yes, this situation has the smell of a ‘disease’; one that is tearing apart the balance of our world, both stripping our children of their teen years; as well as, is causing an imbalance in our population growth factors.

Having been a teen pregnancy mother ( my daughter was 14), I am telling you people that the work NEVER ENDS, as we are almost 10 years later and she is still in need of support from us, the ‘grandparents’. * We live in Canada.

God Bless each and everyone here today that will celebrate the promise to Take Action inside your community to STOP TEEN PREGNANCY through education and complete support of both our young girls; as well as our young boys!

EDUCATION EDUCATION EDUCATION … is the Key!