Indonesia: The ICPD+20 and the Unfinished Agenda
A Review of Indonesia’s Progress on the International Conference on Population and Development’s Programme of Action
Jakarta, 1 April 2014 – Despite notable achievements in meeting goals from the Programme of Action ofthe International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), Indonesia still faces challenges on several issues regarding sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR). The findings of a review of Indonesia’s progress on the ICPD Programme of Action since 1994 will be discussed during a High Level Seminar on ICPD+20 and the Unfinished Agenda, on 1 April 2014 in Jakarta, organized by the National Population and Family Planning Board (BKKBN) and UNFPA, the United Nations Fund for Population.
In 1994, 179 countries including Indonesia met at the ICPD in Cairo and agreed to adopt a 20-year Programme of Action. The global community is current reviewing the successes of the ICPD and assessing areas of improvement while defining a renewed global agenda on population issues within the context of the Post-2015 Development Agenda.
The goals of the ICPD are based on the fundamental idea that increasing social, economic and political equality, including SRHR, is the basis for individual wellbeing, lower population growth and sustainable development. The aim of the ICPD Programme of Action is to improve outcomes in several areas related to sexual and reproductive health including maternal health, family planning, prevention and treatment of HIV, adolescent reproductive health, and addressing gender-based violence. The ICPD was a global push for a rights-based approach to core development issues that increases the capacities of individuals to claim their rights, and the capacities of governments and other duty-bearers to fulfil their obligations.
In Indonesia, the family planning programme has beennotably successful in bringing down the total fertility rate (TFR) from 5.6 children in 1970s to around 2.6 in the late 1990s. Maternal health interventions resulted in the maternal mortality ratio (MMR) going from 390 per 100,000 live births in 1990s to 228 in late 2000s. Unfortunately, in the last ten years or so, family planning indicators such as TFR and contraceptive prevalence rate have been stagnant. Additionally, the Indonesian Demographic and Health Survey (IDHS) 2012 found that the MMR increased to 359. This means more mothers are dying of preventable causes, at rates close to those of the 1990s.
Prof. Fasli Jalal, Chairperson of BKKBN, noted that it is now time to “work together in orchestra to address the issue”. Since 2007, the Government of Indonesia has worked on revitalising the family planning programme by allocating more resources to strengthen service delivery and improve demand for family planning.
The prevention of HIV also remains a challenge. Despite a low prevalence of HIV among the general population (0.4%) in 2014, there are epidemics in concentrated key populations such as injecting drug users, sex workers and their clients, transgendered groups, and men who have sex with men and their sexual partners.
Although Indonesia has made significant strides in promoting gender equality since ICPD Cairo, gender-based violence (GBV) remains an urgent area of improvement and continuous efforts. There are also challenges arising from a lack of adolescent reproductive health services and information. The barriers to accessing contraception and high unmet need for adolescents leads to a number of significant issues. Despite a decreasing age specific fertility rate (ASFR) of adolescents aged 15-19 years, the issues of early marriage and adolescent pregnancy continues to be a concern in Indonesia. Early childbirth raises fertility rates and increases risks of maternal mortality and morbidity from complications during pregnancy and delivery.
During the implementation of ICPD Programme of Action, new emerging issues on population and development have arisen which must be addressed in the Post-2015 Development Agenda. As national demographics change, Indonesia’s population will include growing cohorts of older persons and youth – key population groups with unique unaddressed needs. Climate change, expanded urbanization, and increasingly mobile populations are trends that present new challenges to ensuring that individuals can fully attain their rights, including their rights to sexual and reproductive health.
Mr. Jose Ferraris, UNFPA Representative in Indonesia, said “The new emerging issues not only pose problems, but also provide opportunities for Indonesian people to improve their development programmes. It is hoped that this review report can serve as a useful self-critique to improve the implementation of ICPD unfinished business in the future, in the Post 2015 Development Agenda.”
For more information, please contact Mr. Samidjo – Programme Officer – Advocacy, UNFPA Indonesia (samidjo@unfpa.org or +628121068328) or Ms. Muktiani Asri - Biro Hukum, Organisasi dan Humas BKKBN (anie_asrie@yahoo.co.id or +6281280607869).
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