Closing remarks, 55th Session of the Commission on Population and Development

Remarks by UNFPA Executive Director Dr. Natalia Kanem at the closing of the 55th session of the Commission on Population and Development, 29 April 2022.

Mr. Chairperson,
Excellencies,
Distinguished delegates, ​​
Civil society friends,
Dear colleagues,

May I begin by congratulating you all on the successful outcome of the 55th session of the Commission on Population and Development. 

It is significant to the well-being of multitudes of women and girls, who look to the United Nations and to this Commission to help improve their lives and livelihoods, that the Commission has adopted such a meaningful, action-oriented resolution on the special theme, “Population and sustainable development, in particular sustained and inclusive economic growth”. This is an auspicious milestone as we commence the era of our “new normal” at the United Nations.

The CPD55 negotiations involved frank discussions, and delegations demonstrated ample flexibility and political will to reach an agreement. You rallied together to adopt a balanced text that reflects the importance of sustainable development and inclusive societies, as we work to recover from the devastating socio-economic impacts of Covid-19 and other crises, and to put the international community back on track to achieve our shared goals. 

This resolution also reflects on the importance of sustained and inclusive economic growth as an integral part of ICPD implementation, highlighting the gendered dimensions of inclusivity, including with respect to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights.

Moreover, we are pleased with the adoption of the decisions on the special theme for the 57th session of the CPD and on the “Cycle for the review and appraisal of the implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development”. We look forward to the national and regional review processes, which will be launched to support the global review of the ICPD@30 in 2024 at this Commission, and for the possible General Assembly commemoration of the 30th anniversary.

On behalf of all of us at UNFPA, I thank our distinguished Chair, His Excellency Ambassador Enrique Manalo of the Republic of the Philippines, for his vision and leadership, which were instrumental to the positive outcome this week. 

UNFPA also thanks the other members of the Bureau for their commitment over the past year to making this result a reality, and in particular the representatives of El Salvador and the Netherlands whose leadership, experience, and perseverance made this outcome possible, respectively, Ms. Mayra Sorto and Ms. Sara Offermans - thank you.

I thank the UN DESA Population Division for their stewardship of the Commission and excellent collaboration, as well as my dedicated UNFPA colleagues for their contributions to the success of this year’s session.

Finally, allow me to thank all of you, distinguished representatives and delegates of the Commission, for your hard work and active participation. Your dedication to the in-person negotiations and to this consensus is much appreciated.

I hope these discussions will also contribute substantially to the upcoming 2022 High Level Political Forum, which will review SDGs 4 (on education) and 5 (on gender equality).

The ICPD Programme of Action is clear: the rights, health and well-being of individuals, and especially women and girls, are at the heart of our collective aspirations for sustainable development. 

It is my sincere hope that at our next session, which will consider the theme “Population, education and sustainable development”, CPD56 will carry forward the momentum from the landmark Transforming Education Summit in September of this year to revitalize global commitment to education and lifelong learning to achieve SDG 4.

On behalf of UNFPA and the UN system, let me reaffirm our commitment to partner with you to achieve the ICPD Programme of Action, on which the success of the 2030 Agenda depends. 

As we approach the ICPD@30, may we all build on the substantive discussions of the past year and the momentum generated at the Nairobi Summit to accelerate the implementation of the Programme of Action, finish the unfinished business of the ICPD, and fulfill our collective vision for a future of rights and choices for all, with no one left behind.

Thank you once again.