Bush and the Contraception Contradiction
July 25, 2005
Even as President Bush reinstated the Mexico City Policy (also known as the Global Gag Rule) in January 2001, the White House asserted that the President supports U.S. family planning assistance efforts, stating that “he knows that one of the best ways to prevent abortion is by providing quality voluntary family planning services.” Four years later, the President's support for safe and voluntary contraception is no longer so clear or concise.
In Comes the Pledge, Out Goes the First Amendment
July 18, 2005
Those Who Will Suffer are Those Most At-Risk of AIDS
Since 2003, the Bush Administration has restricted funds to foreign nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) combating HIV/AIDS by requiring these groups to have an official policy opposing prostitution and sex trafficking. This anti-prostitution loyalty oath did not previously extend to U.S. organizations because of justifiable concerns about its constitutionality, but domestic HIV/AIDS NGOs now are being required to make the same pledge or lose critical federal funds, due to the Justice Department's reversal of its original interpretation of the policy.
Equality for Women, Sustainable Populations for the World
July 11, 2005
The world's population has more than doubled in the last half-century and is increasing by nearly 76 million people each year. Poor access to reproductive health services and the low social status of women continue to drive population growth, most of which is taking place in the world's poorest countries. On the occasion of this World Population Day (July 11), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) is campaigning to underscore the important issue of gender equality, and PAI joins them in this effort.
Rhetoric vs. Reality: Administration’s Inaction Speaks Louder Than Words
July 6, 2005
The United States joins other world leaders this week at the 31st Group of Eight (G8) summit in Gleneagles, Scotland, where as host, British Prime Minister Tony Blair is turning the spotlight on economic development. While the conversation will focus primarily on development efforts in Africa, it speaks to the role and future of the broader Millennium Declaration agenda, which includes the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), to which 191 countries, including the United States, agreed in 2000.
Sexual and Reproductive Health is Key to the MDGs
June 20, 2005
Civil society is taking center stage this week in New York at the United Nations General Assembly hearings. Only months away from the 2005 World Summit – the five-year anniversary of the Millennium Declaration and an opportunity to review progress made toward achievement of the MDGs – the sexual and reproductive health community is taking every opportunity to advance one message: universal access to sexual and reproductive health services is key to achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), particularly those related to gender equality, maternal health, HIV/AIDS and environmental sustainability.
First Country to Receive Assistance from Millennium Challenge Account is Featured in New Documentary
June 14, 2005
Finding Balance Links Population Pressures, Health Needs and the Environment
Finding Balance: Forests and Family Planning in Madagascar, an award-winning 9-minute documentary by Population Action International, explores the work of Voahary Salama—an innovative local organization that works to reduce pressure on the environment while improving the health of the country's population—and features rare interviews with local women who reveal their desire to have smaller families.
Population Action International to Premiere Award-Winning Film
May 23, 2005
With 90 percent of its forests already destroyed, the need for balance in Madagascar's fragile ecosystem is great. PAI's award-winning film, Finding Balance: Forests and Family Planning in Madagascar, draws attention to the impact of rapid population growth on the country's rural villages and emphasizes the vital links between population pressures, reproductive health needs, and environmental sustainability.
AIDS-Affected Countries Tell U.S. to Keep Its Money
May 13, 2005
More than 40 million people worldwide are living with HIV or AIDS, and another 14,000 people are infected each day – mainly by sexual transmission. The Bush administration claims to have elevated this public health emergency to a top priority, in 2003 pledging to spend US$15 billion over five years to help eliminate the virus. But rather than ensuring the swift and direct disposal of those funds to proven efforts on the ground, the government is tying up its aid in ideological stipulations – and AIDS-affected countries are choosing to go without.
Access to Health and Environmental Sustainability Go Hand in Hand
April 22, 2005
A statement from Robert Engelman, Vice President for Research, Population Action International (PAI)
"On the 35th anniversary of Earth Day, PAI recognizes the critical importance of conserving natural resources and sustaining the environment for the generations to come. Within a decade, over 7 billion people are likely to live on this planet – an increase of about 500 million people from today. The health of both the planet and its people are priorities.
Without More Money and Better Policies, Women and Children Pay the Price
April 7, 2005
"PAI welcomes the new report from the World Health Organization (WHO), Make Every Mother and Child Count. This research reinforces the critical importance of universal access to sexual and reproductive health services, as agreed to in Cairo and Beijing ten years ago and underscored in reports and meetings surrounding the five-year review of the Millennium Development Goals.
