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ENB:06:13 [Next] . [Previous] . [Contents]

EGYPT:

Dr. Maher Mahran, Minister of State for Population and Family Welfare, said that the link between population, sustained economic growth and sustainable development should be strongly supported by further elaborating the impact of consumption patterns. The link between poverty reduction and Structural Adjustment programmes should be addressed in the document, as should the link between rural development and sustained economic growth. He also recommended that the Secretariat give greater emphasis to: the responsibilities of men; closing the gender gap; recommending "Safe Motherhood" education programmes; raising the status of women; reducing illiteracy rates among adult women; the link between ethics and population programmes; effective programmes for the elderly; school programmes in population and environmental protection studies; adequate financial resources for the implementation process; respecting the sovereign rights of States; and recommending that NGOs be given freedom to exercise their historical creativity and pioneering role without undue bureaucratic constraints. He also proposed integrating the sub-chapters in Chapter IV (gender equality) with other chapters and combining Chapters V and VI (family with population growth and structure); VII and VIII (reproductive rights with health and mortality); IX and X (population distribution with international migration); and XI and XII (information, education and communication with capacity-building).