The document summarizes efforts by the UNFPA and African nations to improve sexual and reproductive health and rights in Africa. Key points include: - The UNFPA executive director applauded African leaders for approving a Continental Policy Framework for Sexual and Reproductive Health. - UNFPA is partnering with the African Union and regional economic communities to strengthen capacity and data management related to population and development issues. - Plans are underway for a Pan-African Youth Charter and Youth Federation to promote youth empowerment and participation. - Countries are exploring opportunities for South-South cooperation between China and African nations on population training and best practices. - Anti-fistula campaigns are gaining momentum across Africa with medical

1. ...because everyone counts.
1 •
March 2006
UNFPA chief applauds the
approval of SRH
Continental Policy
Framework
M
s. Thoraya Obaid, UNFPA
Executive Director, hailed
African leaders for their
efforts to implement regional and
international agreements, particu-
larly those related to the Millennium
Development Goals.
Calling it a “milestone,” she
particularly applauded the
Continental Policy Framework for
Sexual and Reproductive Health
(SRH) approved by African Ministers
of Health and endorsed by the AU
Executive Council in January 2006.
In her message disseminated
during the Assembly of the AU
Heads of States in Khartoum in
January, Ms. Obaid stated that
sexual and reproductive health is a
key component of maternal and child
health as well as women’s
empowerment
By approving the Framework,
the AU Ministers of Health reaffirmed
that improving maternal health
through preventive efforts is more
economical than curative
approaches. The approval reaffirmed
the position the Ministers took in
Tripoli in 2003 that investing in
maternal health is an economic,
social and moral imperative.
Ms. Obaid’s message also
underscored the Ministers’
affirmation of the need to strongly
link sexual and reproductive health
AFRICAN UNION SUMMIT • January 2006 • Khartoum, Sudan
to HIV/AIDS attesting to the fact that
such linkages would result in more
relevant and cost-effective programs
with greater impact.
Reiterating that sexual and
reproductive health is a human right,
the message emphasized rights as
fundamental to achieving gender
equality, reducing poverty, improving
child and maternal health, and
halting the spread of HIV/AIDS.••

2. ...because everyone counts.
• 2
T
UNECA
and
UNFPA
steps-up
partnership
The United Nations Economic
Commission forAfrica (UNECA) and
the United Nations Population Fund
(UNFPA)renewedtheirlongstanding-
partnershiptocontributetoaddressing
Africa’s priority population and devel-
opmentissuesinthecontextofpoverty
reduction.
TherecentlysignedMemorandum
of Understanding (MOU) establishes
thegroundforECAandUNFPAtoco-
ordinateeffortsandpoolresources to
support and identify areas in popula-
tion,genderandpovertyreductionthat
maybetargetedtoimprovethequality
oflifeofeverywoman,manandchildin
Africa.
AUC’sSocial Affairs Com-
missioner, Adv. Bience Gawanas,
assured UNFPAthat the equipment
will be taken cared of — stress-
ingAUC’s accountability in imple-
menting the AUC-UNFPA joint
project. At the ICT equipment
turnover activity held at the Afri-
can Union on February 16, 2006,
she also thanked the UNFPA Ex-
ecutive Director, Ms. Thoraya
Obaid for facilitating the partner-
ship.
AU Commissioner Gawanas
underscored that putting the ICT
equipment into work will greatly
enhance theAUC’s data collection
and processing capabilities. “Any-
one could come at anytime and we
should be able to give the needed
data,” the commisioner said.
On the part of the UNFPA, Ms.
Etta Tadesse, Representative to the
AU and ECA, wished that with a
functioning updated ICT equip-
ment, the African Union will go
from strength to strength. Dr. B.
O. Tema, Director for Human Re-
sources, Science and Technology
(HRST) also thanked UNFPA on
behalf of the HRST Commis-
sioner.•
is a quarterly publication of the
United Nations Population Fund -
Liaison Office
in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Comments, contributions,
and diary items
on the context of the
African Union Commission and NEPAD
may be considered for publication.
www.unfpa.org
Please address inquiries,
contributions and request
for free subscription to:
Maria Lourdes M. Luces
or luces@unfpa.org
UNFPA Liaison Office
1st Floor Africa House
ECA Compound, King Menelik II Avenue,
P. O. Box 8714, Addis Ababa, ETHIOPIA
The
Turnover
ACTIVITY
Throughthisagreement,theECAand
theUNFPAshallalsoendeavortomoni-
torandevaluatetheoutcomesoftherec-
ommendationsoftheBeijingPlatformof
Action,theInternationalConferenceon
PopulationandDevelopment/Programof
Action or ICPD/PoA and other consen-
susreachedatinternationalandregional
levels.
Thepartnershipfeaturesthestrength-
eningofthecapabilitiesofRegionalEco-
nomicCommunities.Otheractivitiesun-
derthisrenewedpartnershipincludepro-
gramsundertheNewPartnershipforAf-
rica’s Development or NEPAD and the
strategicprogramframeworkoftheAfri-
canUnionCommission.••

3. ...because everyone counts.
3 •
UNFPA delivers
ICT package
to AUC
(L-R) Dr. Thomas Bisika, Head for Health Division; Ms. Etta Tadesse, UNFPA
Representative to AU and ECA; Adv. Bience Gawanas, Commissioner for
Social Affairs; Dr. B. O. Tema, Director for Human Resources, Science and
Technology; and, Dr. Kamel Esseghairi, Director for Social Affairs.
The ICT equipment delivered at the
AUC compound.
AUC and UNFPA staff sign ICT
equipment turnover documents.
IIt will be recalled that the
Memorandum of Understanding
signed on June 3, 2005 between
the African Union Commission
(AUC) and the United Nations
Population Fund (UNFPA), the lat-
ter approved a Project Cooperation
Agreement in the amount of
US$1.2 million which aimed at
strengthening of the AUC’s insti-
tutional and technical capacity.
The Area of Cooperation re-
flected the priorities set in the AU
2005-2007 Plan of Action - Hori-
zon 2007 and in harmony with the
Plan of Action of the International
Conference on Population and De-
velopment.
A key project component is en-
hancing the data management ca-
pability of the Commission. To this
end, UNFPA purchased and deliv-
ered ICT equipment worth more
than US $100,000 to theAUC. The
delivered ICT package is expected
to enhance the AUC’s data man-
Ms. Etta Tadesse, UNFPA Respresen-
tative to AU and ECA, and H.E.
Advocate Bience Gawanas - AU
Commissioner for Social Affairs at
the ICT equipment turnover
program at the African Union in
January 2006.
agement and capability.
The package include one data
center server, one application/stor-
age server, three desktop computers,
two laptop computers, one laser jet
printer, one color laser jet printer,
peripherals and softwares.••

4. ...because everyone counts.
• 4
”
The
African Union
prepares for the
approval and
adoption of the
Pan African
Youth
Charter
and the
Pan African
Federation
* Apostle Emmanuel Etim is the CEO/
Director of the Centre for Development Ac-
tion International, Institute for Youth Stud-
ies and Development Research and Chair,
NEPAD International Youth Expert Panel.
The meeting was attended by
youth and experts from African
States and the UNFPA sup-
ported a very youth-inclusive
process that even sought the
help of a youth as consultant.
Participants were encouraged
to return and lead extensive
consultations on the draft docu-
ments discussed at the meeting
prior to the Meeting of Experts
and African Union Ministers in
Charge of Youth in May this
year.
“The AU’s youth meeting was
a milestone as it sought to
propose a continental Youth
Charter providing for youth
participation, national policy,
education and skills, sexual and
reproductive health, peace and
security, among others.
At the meeting, we discussed
a framework for establishing a
strong and inclusive mechanism
for youth participation in deci-
sion-making.
Further, there was a proposal to
organize a Pan African Youth
Federation. The Federation will help
facilitate the evolution of the role of
young people toward their growth
and development, a valuable social
capital for young people.

5. ...because everyone counts.
5 •
iIn accordance to its Priority Plan
of Action “Horizon 2007”, the African
Union Commission has begun taking
leadership in the area of youth devel-
opment and empowerment. Under its
programs for the youth is the Pan-Afri-
can Youth Charter, a framework that
reaffirms not only the rights, freedom
and responsibilities of youth in Africa,
but also promotes their development
and empowerment.
”
“A Pan African Youth Charter
is long overdue. The charter, if
approved, shall provide a
framework through which
governments can consult and
mobilize the youth in their
countries and will serve as the
base for national youth
development planning and
advocacy.
So, who is the African youth?
The UN pegs the youth at age 15-
24. Life expectancy in many
African countries as a result of
HIV/AIDS is 43-56. Many young
people finish university education
at the age of 23-28, and the age
of initiation to adulthood based on
many cultures in Africa is around
15-25. So then, who is the African
youth?
I see great hope with the
establishment of a Pan-African
Youth Federation. I hope that this
will be a great opportunity to
move from rhetoric to concrete
actions, from declarations to
people-based development
programs and from frameworks to
community development
initiatives. I really look forward to
seeing this happen.
*Dabesaki Maclkemenjima is the Ex-
ecutive Director of the Development Part-
nership International and a Task Force
Member of the Global Youth Coalition on
HIV/AIDS. He is also the UNFPA youth con-
sultant for this activity.
Participants at the Pan African Youth Forum and Meeting of Experts held
in African Union in Addis Ababa in January 2006.
Pan African Youth Forum to be held
in Addis Ababa in May 2006 and
subsequently for the adoption by
Member-States at the Ministerial
Conference scheduled to take place
after the Youth and Experts Meet-
ings.
The Charter will be tabled for ap-
proval by the Heads of States and
Governments at the Summit in July.•
On January 5-6 2006, a meeting
for experts and youth representatives
was organized by the AU Department
on Human Resources, Science and
Technology with support from the
UNFPA to review the draft Pan-African
Youth Charter and a concept paper on
a Pan African Youth Federation.
The brainstorming was a prepara-
tory activity for the Charter’s endorse-
ment by the youth and experts at the
*
Mssrs. Etim and Maclkemenjima are both participants in the AFRICAN YOUTH FORUM held in
the African Union in January 2006. The above views and opinions are entirely their own.

6. ...because everyone counts.
• 6
UNFPUNFPUNFPUNFPUNFPAAAAA and
CHINCHINCHINCHINCHINAAAAA’s National
Population and
Family Planning
Commission (NPFPC)
initiateSouth-South cooperation
China’s National Population and
Family Planning Commission (NPFPC)
and the UNFPA are exploring means of
Sino-African South-South Cooperation in
the field of population and development.
The UNFPA took the initiative of iden-
tifying African countries’ priority training
areas based on the Chinese best prac-
tices and discussions with China’s
NPFPC. These areas are on poverty
reduction, training in leadership on popu-
lation, contraceptive logistics, and re-
search management, among others.
Specifically, the training areas that
some African countries indicated as their
priority are on:
• Maternal Mortality Reduction
• SRH Programs Monitoring and
Evaluation
• Integration of Rights-Based
Approach to RH and FP
Likewise, African countries are also
interested on:
• Reproductive Health Commodity
• RH Service Delivery
• Youth Friendly SRH Services
• Poverty-Reduction through
women empowerment and
strong work ethic
• Gender/ Adolescent RH and
Integrating RH/HIV
The consensus among NPFPC,
UNFPA and partners such as
International Planned Parenthood
Federation (IPPF) was that African
countries could highly benefit from the
Chinese experience and lessons learned,
given China’s proven capacity in the area
of population and family planning
particularly in contraceptive technology
and logistics.
On the other hand, it was agreed that
there are many lessons from the African
Region particularly in the area of
reproductive health and HIV prevention
that could be of benefit to China as well.•
Anti-fistula
campaign gains
in Africa
“Today, during the next 24 hours, an
estimated6,000girlswillundergothepractice
offemalegenitalmutilation(FGM)orcutting.I
join many others in calling for an end to this
practice, which violates the rights of women
and girls and harms their sexual and
reproductive health.”
Thus stated Thoraya Ahmed Obaid, UNFPA
executive director,at the 4TH Annual Interna-
tionalDayof ZeroToleranceof FGMinFebruary.
Ms. Obaid commended those who work to
endthepracticeandnotedthatchangehadto
come from the communities engaging in the
practice,astraditionswereoftenstrongerthan
law.“FGMorcuttinghastaughtusthatchange
mustcomefromwithin,”shesaid.
In the same occasion in Mauritania, the
Association of Imams and Ulemas released a
fatwadenouncingFGMandclarifyingitsplace
injurisprudence.Theceremonywasorganised
by the State Secretariat for Women with the
supportof UNFPAandUNICEF.
ThefatwadeclaresthattheHolyKorandoes
not contain any text that suggests that girls
shouldbeexcised.Thefatwaalsoclarifiedthat
theHadithsoftheProphetMohamed,according
totheulemasandotherscholarsdonotcontain
anyproofthatexcisionwasrecommendedfor
girls.
InJanuary,theInternationalOrganizationfor
WomenandDevelopmentextendeditsefforts
tocuremanyAfricangirlsandwomenof vesico-
vaginal fistula by sending doctors to various
Africancountries,suchasNiger,onshort-term
relieftripstotreatwomenwithfistulas.
Inthesamemonth,twoUgandandoctorsand
twonursesunderwenttraininginvesico-vaginal
fistula repair at Kitovu Missionary Hospital in
Masaka District. The month-long project is
funded by Engender Health and the training
equipmentissuppliedbyUNFPA.
TheUNFPAestimatesthatmorethan2-million
womenandgirls,mostlyinAfricaandSoutheast
Asia, suffer from fistulas — a serious
complication of childbirth that leaves the
mother physically debilitated and also
ostracizedbyherfamilyandcommunity.
The UNFPA project, ‘Preventing Harm and
Healing Wounds,’ launched in 2003 to end
fistula globally covers 30 countries in Sub-
Saharan Africa. The project ensures the
prevention and treatment of fistula, to save
millionsoflivesofwomen.•
West Africa Health Organization Executive Director, Dr. Kabba Joiner,
meets with Ms. Etta Tadesse at the latter’s office.
WORKING with Regional
Economic Communities
South-South
cooperation

7. ...because everyone counts.
7 •
“Meeting reproductive
health supply needs is
a key element of
the global effort
to save the lives of
women and
men by protecting
their reproductive health.”
This is UNFPA’s message articu-
lated by Thoraya Obaid, its executive
director.
In this regard, the UNFPA has de-
fined steps to operationalize the Glo-
bal Programme to Enhance Reproduc-
tive Health Commodity Security (RHCS).
At the country level, key steps include
ensuring the development of a na-
tional coordinating body for RHCS, the
inclusion of contraceptives in the na-
tional essential drugs list, and the
creation of a national budget line to
fund RH commodities.
“RHCS works toward prevention of
HIV/AIDS and reduction of maternal
mortality,” said Mr. Jagdish Upadhyay,
chief of the Commodity Management
Branch of the UNFPA in New York.
At the planning meeting on RH
Commodity Security with the Country
Technical Services Team inAddis Ababa,
he said that the Team at the meeting
endeavored to establish country-spe-
cific needs in terms of RHCS.
“We would like to find
out what is available, what
are the gaps, and to try to
address these needs,” he
stated. These needs and
purposes may come in the
form of supply, advocacy,
infrastructure, and
sustainability.
Plans were finalized at
the meeting. “And on that
basis, we will find out how
we can address the needs
and the gaps. We can raise
funds from donors and from
Planning Meeting on RH Commodity Security with the Countr y Technical Ser vices Team - Addis Ababa attended
by staff from UNFPA New Yor k and representatives from Regional Economic Communities.
countries to address them,” Mr.
Upadhyay revealed.
The UNFPA looks at every coun-
try’s needs and prioritize them. “We
look at all countries of Africa, there is
no specific priority country,” he as-
sured.
Meanwhile, the UNFPA has begun
involving the Regional Economic Com-
munities or RECs in its planning work-
shops and key meetings particularly
those related to maternal mortality
reduction and ensuring reproductive
health commodity security. These Com-
munities are the East African Commu-
nity (EAC), Inter Governmental Author-
ity on Development (IGAD), Southern
African Development Community
(SADC) and the West African Health
Organization (WAHO) with whom the
UNFPA identified areas on partner-
ships and priority support.
Moreover, the UNFPA in joint col-
laboration with the World Health Or-
ganization (WHO) and the Interna-
tional Organization on Migration (IOM)
supported the Rapid Capacity Assess-
ment for the said RECs.•

8. ...because everyone counts.
• 8
T h e s e
victories
r e p r e s e n t
important steps
forward but we still have a long way
to go before we reach gender parity
in the political decision making
levels. Today only 16 per cent of
legislators worldwide are women.
Today I call for greater action to
involve women in decision-making at
all levels—from the top of government
and the United Nations down to the
basic unit of society, the family, and
foremost in matters related to their
own lives.
Research shows that while much
progress has been made, millions
of women are still denied the
opportunity to make even the most
basic decisions about marriage and
child-bearing.
At September’s World Summit,
world leaders agreed to achieve
universal access to reproductive
health by 2015 as critical for the
attainment of gender equality and the
other Millennium Development Goals
to improve maternal health, reduce
child mortality, combat HIV/AIDS,
and reduce poverty. Reproductive
health and rights are fundamental to
women’s empowerment.
Today, on International Women’s
Day, I would like to encourage
greater dialogue within societies,
communities and families, between
women and men, between young
and old. We need to talk to each
other and find ways to advance
mutual respect, mutual commu-
nication and mutual responsibility.
Gender equality should be
inscribed into national law and
translated into investments in
national budgets. UNFPA is
committed to promoting sexual and
reproductive health and rights,
women’s empowerment, male
involvement and responsibility, and
gender equality.
Today we salute the women and
men who are working towards these
worthy goals. •
Womenare not only life
givers. They are also
peace builders and
must play a full role
in conflict resolution
and recovery. They are
workers, even though
their work is often
undervalued and
underpaid.
They are the backbone of families,
communities and society, even
though their multiple roles are not
often recognized or appreciated.
Yes, women are different from men
but this difference should be
celebrated along with the recognition
that all human beings are created
equal in dignity and rights and
should be afforded equal opportunity
and legal protection.
Much progress has been
made over the years for the
advancement of women
and this past year was
no exception.
In Liberia,
Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf
was elected President,
the first female
President
in Africa.
In Germany, Angela Merkel
was elected as the nation’s
first female Chancellor. And
in Chile, citizens elected their
first woman President,
Michelle Bachelet.