World Population Day is observed on 11th July every year to raise awareness about the global issue of population. It was established in 1989 by the then Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme. The formation of this development programme was triggered by the Day of Five Billion, which was observed on 11 July 1987.
The global pandemic of Covid-19 has hit people, communities and economies across the world. It can have a serious impact on the population of the world as well. This year, the observance of this day is focused on safeguarding the health and rights of women and girls across the world. The health and reproductive services are disrupted with a rise on gender based violence.
According to the UN, the risk of unintended pregnancies are high as the availability of contraceptives is affected by the disruption in supply chains. This is one of the main issues at hand this World Population Day.
The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), formerly the United Nations Fund for Population Activities is the lead UN agency for delivering a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe and every young person’s potential is fulfilled. They work on the improvement of reproductive health, including creation of national strategies and protocols, and birth control by providing supplies and services.
According to a recent research by UNFPA, if the lockdown continues for 6 more months with disruption of health services, modern contraceptives may not be available to about 47 million women in low and middle-income countries. This can result to 7 million unintended pregnancies. With this, about 31 million additional cases of gender-based violence can also be expected. 2 million cases of female genital mutilation and 13 million child marriages between 2020 and 2030 are also impending if the UNFPA programmes on the ground gets disrupted.
(Feature image source: CNN)
