bdnews24.com :
Bangladesh has said it will continue supporting the developing countries’ south-south collaboration, Partners in Population and Development (PPD), which is celebrating its 20th anniversary.
Headquartered in Dhaka, the inter-governmental alliance PPD collaborates among 26 member states in family planning, reproductive health, population and development.
It was created at the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in Cairo in 1994.
Speaking at a high-level breakfast meeting in New York on Wednesday, State Minister for Health and Family Welfare Zahid Maleque commended the contribution of PPD in family planning and reproductive health.
He said Bangladesh has “full confidence” in this collaboration and was “committed” to support the alliance.
Bangladesh’s Permanent Mission to the UN, PPD, and the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health (PMNCH) co- hosted the meeting highlighting the rights of women and child.
Bangladesh’s Permanent Representative AK Abdul Momen chaired the meeting that took place on the sidelines of the 47th Commission on Population and Development (CPD), the PPD said in a media release.
The meeting brought together ministers of health, senior officials of PPD member states and key partners including WHO, UNFPA and International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF).
The meeting also highlighted the need to put “people’s health” at the centre of the post-2015 development agenda. Momen also reiterated Bangladesh’s commitment for “continued support” to PPD.
He stressed the need to invest in health and education for sustainable development, as opposed to areas such as defence which he said “consumed disproportionate resources, without contributing to development”.
PPD member states represent over half the world’s population, have the largest youth population, and also grappling with aging population while at the same time dealing with development challenges among other things.
