Africa's population and development bulletin

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Economic Commission for Africa

Africa's Population and Development Bulletin

2002

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ECA/SDD/02/01

Economic Commission for Africa

Africa's Population and Development Bulletin

2002

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The Sustainable Development Division (SDD) of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) publishes Africa's Population and Development Bulletin. Its contents do not necessarily reflect the views of the

United Nations. Material from this Bulletin may be freely quoted or reprinted but acknowledgement is

requested, together with a copy of the publication containing the quotation or reprint.

Correspondence should be addressed to:

The Editor, Africa's Population and Development Bulletin Sustainable Development Division (SDD)

United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) P.O. Box 3001, Addis Ababa

Ethiopia

Fax:251-1-514416 E-mail: [email protected]

Cover photo: Peter Macdiamid, Africa-photo.com

For this and other publications, please visit the ECA website at the following address:

http://www.un.org/depts/eca/divis/index.htm

Publications are also posted in the ECA Population Information Africa (POPIA) website at the following

address: http://www.uneca.org/popia/

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Editorial

This is the fourth issue of an initiative of the Sustainable Development Division (SDD) of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). Africa's Population and Development Bulletin has been produced yearly since 1999 in English and French (3000 hard copies) and widely disseminated in Africa and outside the continent, among planners, policymakers, universities and research ers, NGOs, international organizations and experts at large. It is also distributed electronically and it is available on the ECA Website as well as on the Population Information Africa (POPIA)

Website.

Africa's Population and Development Bulletin aims to promote the exchange and sharing of expe riences among countries in the implementation of plans of action and recommendations of major global conferences related to sustainable development in Africa. The Bulletin also provides an open platform of discussion on critical regional population and development issues. The Bul letin is a vehicle through which the ECA/SDD presents briefs on trends and policies related to population, food security and sustainable development and presents information on the interre lationships between population, agriculture and environment in Africa. In particular, the Bulletin highlights achievements, best practices and constraints in implementing the recommendations emanating from the major global conferences. In addition, the Bulletin disseminates information on research results, policy initiatives, policy outcomes, national and regional activities and grass

roots initiatives.

Africa's Population and Development Bulletin contributes to the SDD mission to support sustain

able development in Africa, managing the inter-linked issues of the nexus of population and

social development, agriculture and economic livelihoods, and environment. The Bulletin is a tool through which the Division shares analysis of the nexus issues in Africa, and is also an advocacy

instrument used to raise policymakers' awareness of the nexus issues in developing planning.

The general topics included in this Bulletin are recurrent and cover population and sustainable

development in Africa, ICPD-related events and HIV/AIDS in Africa. The Bulletin also includes a

Data Corner, highlights the work of an NGO, and features Research Notes, among other areas.

To serve effectively as a discussion platform, SDD invites all interested parties to make contribu tions to the Bulletin. Researchers and NGOs are specially invited to report on their activities.

SDD would also appreciate information on recently held and upcoming events particularly the

reports of workshops, and other scientific conferences, as well as recently published material on the subject matter To this end, the editors would like to thank all those who accepted our invita tion to contribute to the Bulletin.

In order to be as responsive as possible, the editors would highly appreciate feedback from read

ers. SDD would like to thank all readers who have sent feedback and stated their interests to the Division, particularly those who took the time to fill and return the feedback questionnaires

attached to previous Bulletins. Your comments and suggestions have helped us evaluate the

Bulletin and have been used to improve the publication to better achieve its objectives

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CD

Implementation of Agenda 21 in Africa -10 Years after Rio

Isatou Gaye, SSD/ECA

United Nations

Agenda 21 is a global Plan of Action that was adopted at the World Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1992. The goal of Agenda 21 is to ensure sustainable development through integra tion of environmental and development measures, and reflects a global consensus and political commitment at the highest level on development and environment cooperation. The Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, and the Global Environmental Conventions, namely, Climate Change and Biodiversity and the Forest Principles, were also adopted at the Conference.

Agenda 21 comprises 40 chapters addressing programme areas in the following broad categories: social and economic, conservation and management of resources for development, role of major groups and means of implementation. The implementation of Agenda 21 is primarily the responsibility of national gov ernments, which are expected to spearhead preparation of national strategies, plans, policies and pro cesses, supported and supplemented by international cooperation. Agenda 21 calls in the broadest sense for the participation of the private sector, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and civil society at large.

During its adoption, it was recognized that implementation of Agenda 21 programmes requires considerable resources and that developing countries would need financial assistance to afford the incremental costs of meeting developmental and environmental objectives.

The 55th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) had decided that the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) would be held in Johannesburg, South Africa. The overall objec tives of the Summit that took place were to reinvigorate high-level global political commitment to sustain able development and to North-South partnership, as well as to forge international solidarity in accelerating implementation of Agenda 21. A key feature of the Summit was a ten-year review of progress in implement ing Agenda 21 and the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development.

The 55th Session had further decided that the review should not only identify Agenda 21 accomplishments but also areas needing further efforts, and areas representing new challenges and opportunities. In all, the Summit signified renewed political commitment and support for sustainable development globally and

regionally.

The Agenda 21 review in Africa was carried out at national and subregional levels, culminating in the Regional Conference held in Nairobi, Kenya in October 2001. It was at this Conference that the African Ministerial Statement to WSSD was adopted. The review took into account achievements, constraints, chal-

Agenda 21 Programme Ar

Conservation and Management of Re

sphere; Integrated planning and management of land resources; Combating deforesta tion; Combating desertification and drought; Promoting sustainable agricultural and rural development; Conservation of biological diversity; Environmentally sound management of biotechnology; Protection of the oceans, seas, coastal areas; Protection of the qual ity of freshwater; Environmentally sound management of toxic chemicals, hazardous wastes, solid wastes, sewage and radioactive wastes.

Social and Economic; Combating poverty; Consumption patterns; Demographic dynamics;

Human health; Sustainable human settlement; Integrating environment & development

Role of Major Groups: Women, children and youth; Strengthening the rote of indigenous people and non-governmental organizations; Local authorities initiatives; Strengthening the role of workers and trade unions and the role of business and industry; Scientific and technological community; Strengthening the role of farmers.

Means of Implementation: International cooperation; Financial resources and mecha nisms; Transfer of environmentally sound technology; Cooperation and capacity building.

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lenges and opportunities and proposed the way forward for implementing Africa's priorities.

This article provides a summary of the status of implementation of Agenda 21 in Africa taking into account the various preparatory processes and consultations that took place in Africa within this WSSD review framework The article also out lines proposals on priority actions and the way forward.

Conservation and management of resources for sustainable development

Ten years after Rio, the African region faces a wide range of environmental challenges. The state of the African environment and the natural resources endowments, which to a large extent drive economic growth and sustainable develop ment, have continued to decline. Environmental degradation has largely been associated with the destruction of natural resources and ecosystems, including forests, water, marine and coastal resources as well as the erosion of soils and pol lution of air.

Persistent poverty has contributed to accelerated degradation of natural resources. It has also intensified the process of deserti fication. Reduced agricultural productivity has also hampered efforts to achieve sustainable development. Some of these problems are due to inadequate national and local policies and misplaced priorities but many are also due to changing condi tions on the external, global scene.

Socio-economic issues

Most African economies have been on the decline. The rate of economic growth in at least half of the region has stayed below 2 per cent per annum while the human population has grown by an average of 3 per cent per annum. Africa's role in the global economy has mainly been that of a supplier of cheap labour and raw materials. Thus, Africa has remained the poorest continent despite being one of the most richly endowed regions of the world.

Most Africans are poor, especially in rural areas of sub-Saharan Africa where the incidence of poverty is acute and widespread with about 60 per cent of the population living below the pov erty line. Armed conflicts continue to plague the region and the material and human resources that could have been utilized to fund and manage sustainable development programmes have

African Ministerial Statement to the World Summit on Sustainable Development

Nairobi, October 2001

"Development in Africa is complex and difficult, and many areas related to sustainable development can be considered as priorities. The African Ministerial Statement for the WSSD contains many areas of priorities, which reflect the realities of the region."

Priorities identified in the African Ministerial Statement to the WSSD were:

Eradication of poverty Industrial development Agriculture and food security Human development Youth

Trade and market access

Financing and investment for sustainable development Debt relief

Increased official development assistance (ODA) Global Environment Facility (GEF)

Infrastructure and sustainable human settlement Science and technology

Desertification and land degradation Coastal and marine environments Biodiversity

Forests

Mineral resources

Climate change and the atmosphere Disaster prevention

Waste

Environmentally sound management of chemical products Fresh water and sanitation

Energy

Support for regional cooperation and economic integration Governance

Stakeholders' participation

Source: African Ministerial Statement to the WSSD, Nairobi, October 2001. from:

http://www.johannesburgsummit.org/html/prep_process/africa,html

been diverted to these conflicts, thus exacerbating poverty, refugee status and displacement in the region.

The population in Africa, particularly in urban areas, continues to increase at markedly high rates. This translates into higher demand for basic services to meet the needs of the ever-grow ing population. Although improvements have been recorded in the provision of safe water and adequate sanitation in the region, many people in Africa still lack these basic services, a situation that greatly aggravates ill health and food insecurity.

Life expectancy had increased slightly in the region but this has been seriously eroded by the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Other diseases such as malaria and tuberculosis also remain major health hazards.

Role of major groups

At Rio, it was recognized that genuine commitment and involve ment by all groups of people in society was crucial for success ful implementation of Agenda 21. Such groups include women's groups, youth groups, NGOs, and the private sector. In some countries, ministries for women and youth affairs have been established and women have gradually assumed positions of responsibility. In some countries, umbrella councils of NGOs have been established as the Coordination Unit of all other

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NGO action mandated for rehabilitation of the environment.

The capacities of local authorities have also been enhanced for implementing local Agenda 21 plans of action. The private sector has also been incorporated in various Agenda 21 com mittees. However, a lot remains to be done.

Means of implementation

Africa, in spite of the promises made at Rio, continues to receive extremely low foreign direct investment (FDI). Currently, almost 95 per cent of the financial resources used in Africa are from domestic sources despite the severe indebtedness. During the last decade, substantial proportions of Africa's export earnings have been used for debt repayment. This diversion of resources from development needs contributes to the inability of African countries to implement sustainable development strategies.

Globalization poses new and major challenges. However, despite the great opportunities offered, Africa has seen very few direct benefits, as the stage is not set for taking full advantage.

For example, trade liberalization and debt-servicing pressures in Africa have, to a large extent, exacerbated environmental degradation particularly in the absence of policies and laws that are environment sensitive. The region also lacks the technology and financial resources to develop the full potential of its energy resources, to better serve key sectors such as industry, trans port, and information and communication technology (ICT).

Positive developments

Progress has been achieved with awareness creation about sustainable development and resource management issues.

Countries have formulated policies and strategies and have established and/or strengthened inter-agency coordination mechanisms. Civil society, especially NGOs, women's groups and youth groups, and the private sector are increasingly involved in the design and implementation of sustainable devel opment strategies and action plans. The democratization pro cess has yielded some encouraging results and there is greater

decentralization of natural resource management. Access to education, especially for girls, has improved. Subregional inte gration has increased and has been strengthened.

Proposals on priority actions and the way forward

The eradication of poverty was an overarching theme for Africa at WSSD. Sustainable development strategies were all encompass ing in that formulation and implementation should involve all social actors and should also take socio-economic and environmental

factors into account. Africa should invest in its human resources if

it wants people-driven and people-friendly development. Attain ing health, education and agricultural development goals is key to

such human resource development as well as to enhancement of

social, economic, ecological and political stability.

Energy is crucial for development and Africa should accelerate its adoption of renewable energy sources. Technological and infrastructure I development and increased regional integration are also key to increasing competitiveness in the multilateral trading system. Peace, security and stability are also essential ingredients of sustainable development and should be further promoted and nurtured. Institutional reforms and access to development finance, at national, subregional, regional and international levels are also key to establishment of viable implementation mechanisms.

The article is extracted from Report on Review and Appraisal of

the Implementation ofAgenda 21 inAfn'ca: ECA, 2001

Documents detailing the nature ofAfrica's preparation for WSSD 2002 can be found at the following address:

http://wwwjohannesburgsummit.org/html/prep_process/africa.html

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African Preparations for the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development

Ousmane Laye, SSD/ECA

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In order to facilitate a broad consultative process for the African preparations for the 2002 WSSD, ECA collaborated with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and convened a high-level meeting on sustainable development at ECA Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. A supporting Expanded Joint Secretariat was established to guide, spearhead and support the overall preparatory process in the region.

Besides ECA and UNEP, other members were United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Organi zation of African Unity/African Union (OAU/AU), African Development Bank (ADB), Arab Maghreb Union (AMU), Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD)/Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), and Southern African Development Community (SADC).

The African regional preparations for the 2002 WSSD took place at national, subregional and regional levels. At the national level, National Committees on Sustainable Development carried out assessments.

These national assessments formed the key inputs into the subregional assessments carried out by the five main subregional economic communities, namely AMU, ECCAS, ECOWAS. IGAD/COMESA and SADC.

Subregional consultations took place between 5 September and 3 October 2001. Each of these consulta tions considered the respective subregional assessment report and adopted a subregional declaration on WSSD. The outcomes of these subregional processes were submitted to the regional preparatory process.

The Africa Regional Preparatory Conference was held 15-18 October 2001 in Nairobi, Kenya. The meeting was attended by 273 participants representing 42 African countries, 24 NGOs, 8 intergovernmental organi zations (IGOs) and 17 UN agencies. Participants undertook an assessment of progress made, constraints encountered, areas where further efforts were needed and the new challenges confronting Africa, within the framework of implementing Agenda 21. An African Ministerial Statement was adopted and it became an important input to the global preparatory process for the Johannesburg Summit.

An Industry Forum and an NGO/Civil Society Forum were also held alongside the Regional Conference, and their recommendations were taken into consideration in preparing the Ministerial Statement. The State ment identified priority action areas for consideration by the Summit, targeting the three pillars of sustainable development, namely, economic development, social development and environmental management.

Prior to the regional conference, ECA had participated in the African Eminent Persons Regional Roundtable that took place in Cairo, Egypt, 25-27 June 2001. This was one of five roundtables convened by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Development (UNDESA) in all regions. The roundtables were intended to take advantage of the views of high-level independent experts in support of the global inter governmental process in the ten-year review of the implementation of Agenda 21. The roundtable recom mendations were also taken into

consideration in the African Min isterial Statement. The State ment, together with those from other regions, formed the main inputs of the documentation for the global negotiations by the Preparatory Committee held in New York in January 2002, and the fourth Preparatory Commit tee held at the ministerial level in Indonesia in May 2002.

Population and Sustainable Development in Africa

Ten years after the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio, the Johannesburg Summit presents an exciting opportunity for today's leaders to adopt concrete steps and identify quantifiable targets for better implementing Agenda 21.

The World Summit on Sustainable Development brings together tens of thousands of participants, including Heads of State and Government, national delegates and leaders from non-governmental organizations (NGOs), businesses and other major groups, to focus the world's atten tion and direct action toward meeting such challenges as improvi people's lives and conserving natural resources in a world that is gn ing in population, with ever-increasing demands for food, water, shelter, sanitation, energy, health services and economic security.

Extracted from the UN Website for the Johannesburg Summit 2002 - the World Summit on Sustainable Development. http://www.johannesburgs ummit.org/

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Africa's State of Environment and Food Security

KwadwoTutu, SSD/ECA

This articlei discusses the current state of Africa's environment and its implications for food security. The main environmental concerns for Africa include widespread land degradation; deforestation and desertifica tion, loss of arable and grazing land, declining soil productivity, loss of biodiversity, pollution, depletion of freshwater resources, and deteriorating air quality (especially in urban areas). These have wider implica tions on food security, sustainable natural resource management, human health and poverty eradication.

Rapid population growth, obsolete agricultural systems, increasing and chronic poverty, unfavourable terms of trade, the debt burden, impact of drought, natural disasters and inappropriate development policies have all influenced current environmental deterioration. These factors have led to what has become popularly known as the population-agriculture-environment nexus.

Land degradation

Nearly 500 million hectares in Africa are moderately to severely degraded. Africa's tropical forests are esti mated to be declining at the rate of nearly one per cent per annum. The degradation has given rise to increased desertification, decreasing land productivity and loss of arable land. Approximately 50 per cent of land degradation in Africa is from overgrazing, 24 per cent from activities related to crop production, 14 per cent from vegetation removal and another 13 per cent from over exploitation of the land. A degraded environment produces less food, makes biomass fuel scarcer, reduces ecosystem resilience, and renders people malnourished and more susceptible to diseases.

Pressure on natural resources

Africa's large population (estimated at 778.4 million in 1999) and its high rate of population growth are exert ing pressure on the continent's natural resources. Per capita arable land has dropped from 0.6 ha/person in 1961 to 0.27 ha/person by 1993. About 60% per cent of Africa's poor who live on about $US1.00 a day depend on natural resources for their livelihoods (i.e. to meet their food, energy, water and other basic needs). There are, therefore, not enough resources for farmers to undertake intensive agriculture that requires significant investment in inputs and other soil improvement activities. Attaining food security in Africa requires consideration of various interrelated issues and action in various sectors.

Biodiversity

Africa has a large and diverse heritage of biodiversity, including more than 50,000 plant species, 1,000 mammal species and 1,500 bird species. Africa holds five of the 25-biodiversity hotspots of the world, includ ing the Guinean hotspot, which is home to half of Africa's mammalian species. Africa's rich biodiversity has numerous direct and indirect benefits. The direct economic benefits include provision of food, medicines, energy and tourism. Unfortunately, a significant proportion of these resources is either endangered or under threat of extinction. There are a number of critically endangered species in all African countries, with the highest numbers being, perhaps, in Tanzania (43 mammal, 33 bird and 236 plant species) and Madagascar (50 mammal, 27 bird and 162 plant species). The major threats to Africa's biodiversity resources are mainly from climatic variations and human activities such as logging, biomass use, over-hunting, introduction of alien species, and expansion of agriculture land.

Currently, very little value is obtained from biodiversity due mainly to inappropriate policies and obsolete technology. A lot can be done with biodiversity to improve Africa's food security and sustainable develop ment.

Water resources

Despite the abundant water resources in Africa, about 65 per cent of the rural population are without access

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Improved Land Resource Management in the Machakos District of Kenya.

In the 1930s, the semi-arid Machakos District of East-Central Kenya was characterized by soil depletion and erosion, reduction in fallow, use of marginal lands, leading to declining crop yields, landlessness, food shortages, malnutrition, unemployment, rural indebted ness and out-migration. An improved land management systems backed by adequate policies was put in place to address these problems.The management systems included ox-drawn ploughs, short-duration maize varieties, stall feeding and fodder crops for inten sive livestock rearing, monocropping of the main annual crops in rows to facilitate planting, weeding, terracing, contour cultivation with oxen and the use of animal manure for fertilizer (English, etal. 1994).

policies included:

Market-orientation to farm production and access to market outlets for products;

Farmers' access to information on the availability of a wide range of new crops and technically-viable land use options;

Farm households security and long-term rights to farmlands;

Devolution to the local level of decisions concerning the allocation of resources and planning of agricultural development; and

Public investments targeted at providing critical public goods and infrastructure that iocal communities and farmers cannot afford on their own.

Recent studies have shown that there is no evidence of soil depletion. While some erosion is occurring, there is no significant loss of productive capacity because of measures under taken. There is no evidence of declining crop yields while farming systems in marginal lands do not lead to long-term degradation. Reduction in fallow has occurred but has been replaced by new and more productive indigenous systems. Out-migration has declined while there is no evidence of landlessness or rural indebtedness. Unemployment is a prob lem in some areas but food shortages occurs only in exceptional years. Malnutrition is not severe except in socially deprived families. Source: English et al., 1994; Tiffen et a!., 1994

the continent is considered most sus ceptible to the effects of climate change.

Slowly increasing temperature will lead to increased crop losses, while people living their lives in low lying coastal areas will have to move inland because of rising oceans. Other climate change impact involves drought, cyclones and floods, which are great impediments to food security and sustainable development.

Food security

to clean and adequate water supply and 73 per cent of the people in rural areas do not have access to adequate sanitation facilities. The situation is no better in the urban areas where an estimated 25 and 43 per cent of the population do not have access to clean water and sanitation facilities, respectively.

Projections show that by 2025 some 690 million people will be living in either water-scarce {230 million) or water-stressed (460 million) countries, due to inadequate development in the water sector to meet demand or inadequate harnessing in times of over-supply.

Climate change

Even though Africa's 4 per cent contribution to global climate change through greenhouse gas emission is not significant,

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The road to Africa's food security and sustainable development has become daunting due principally to land deg radation. This is leading to declining agricultural productivity and increasing food insecurity. It is also posing severe threats to the rich biodiversity. To reverse this negative trend, action must be taken in four major areas. These are:

Transforming the agricultural sector to make it more pro ductive;

Safeguarding and utilizing the natural resource base sus- tainably;

Pursuing accelerated socio-economic development; and Reducing the high rate of population growth.

The material for this article was taken mainly from "State of the Environment in Africa" by Sustainable Development Division, ECA, 2001. The document can be found on the ECA website:

http://www.uneca.org/

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DND&CPD Oo (/)c o

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The Fourth Meeting of Africa's Follow-up

Committee on the implementation of the DND/ICPD discussed the Population Perspectives in the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD)

Gueye, SSD/ECA

The Fourth Meeting of the Follow-up Committee on the Implementation of the Dakar/Ngor Declaration and the Plan of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development (DND/ICPD) was orga nized in Yaounde, 28-31 January 2002 by the Joint ECA/OAU/ADB Secretariat in collaboration with the Gov ernment of Cameroon and with funding support by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). Country experts from 23 member States, and representatives from 12 institutions and 10 NGOs attended the meet ing. The purpose of the meeting was to review progress made at the country, subregional and regional levels in the implementation of DND/ICPD recommendations, including the key actions adopted at the thirty-third special session of the General Assembly for the further implementation of ICPD.

Population and Employment Framework in support to implementation of NEPAD;

Priority areas and selected specific actions Poverty reduction and sustainable development

• Enlarge areas of advocacy including PEDA Invest in the promotion of food security

Modelling the nexus interconnections for planning purposes HIV/AIDS

Ensure leaders' commitment to the fight against HIV/AIDS Care of infected and affected people

Increase access to anti-retroviral drugs

Promote research in understanding the effects of HIV/AIDS on economically active popu lations and rural communities

Population dynamics and distribution

Monitoring and analysis of population dynamics including analysis of data from civil reg istration, censuses and surveys

Manage refugees and displaced populations

Strengthen institutional capacities to enable a more comprehensive approach to popula tion and development issues

Document and disseminate information on best practices Data, information and communications

Develop country, subregional and regional databases, websites for information sharing Foster standard methodologies for data collection and analysis to facilitate comparison Develop standard socio-economic and demographic indicators for monitoring and evalu ating country implementation of NEPAD and DND/ICPD

Promote ICT training at all levels of education Reproductive health

Investigate interrelationships between women's reproductive health and household food security

Integrate reproductive health into comprehensive primary health programmes Address adolescent reproductive health needs

Promote men's involvement in reproductive health Human resources development/ employment

• Promote research capacity, technological know-how and skills development Promote multi-sectoral approaches to employment

• Encourage vocational training especially for the youth Promote other income-generating activities in rural areas

Develop indicators to monitor progress of implementation in the area of human resource development

Empower women and promote the fulfilment of women roles Promote the informal sector

Population and Employment Frame work in support for the implementa tion of NEPAD

In support to the implementation of the NEPAD, the Follow-up Committee adopted a document entitled "Imple menting the New Partnership for Africa's Development: Some Priorities Areas in Population and Development". The doc ument presents, in a framework format, related issues and justification, as well as suggested specific areas of action in the following priorities areas that address (directly or indirectly) concerns related to population and employment:

(i) Poverty reduction and sustainable development; (ii) HIV/AIDS; (iii) Popula tion dynamics and distribution; (iv) Data, information and communications; (v) Reproductive health; and (vi) Human resource development/employment.

These priority areas should be seen as a basis for interventions by UN agencies in their effort to support the implementation of the NEPAD, within their own man dates. As the focal point for technical ser vices provision to the NEPAD, ECA would coordinate the efforts by UN agencies.

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Focus on ICPD: -Africa's Population and Development Bulletin

It is also to be noted that the participating NGOs at the meeting established a mechanism to co-ordinate their activities in imple menting identified NEPAD priorities: NEPADACT.

Proposals for the ten-year review and evaluation process of ICDP Africa

In reviewing the proposals for the ten-year-review and evalua tion process of ICPD i.e. ICPD+10, the meeting suggested that the ten-year review process in the Africa region should focus on the following seven main thematic areas: (i) Reproductive health; (ii) Youth; (iii) Gender; (iv) Migration and urbanization;

(v) Poverty, population, environment and sustainable develop ment, (vi) HIV/AIDS; (vii) Resource mobilization.

As regard to the type of evaluation, the meeting recommended that both quantitative and qualitative aspects should be evalu ated during the process. The quantitative evaluation will be based on the analysis of completed country questionnaires assessing progress made in country implementation of DND and the recommendations contained in the final document on the key actions. The qualitative evaluation will use information contained in the country reports, which will be prepared by

country experts using guidelines provided by ECA.

Concerning partnership, the meeting recommended that the Joint Secretariat ECA/OAU/ADB should involve NGOs, IGOs, and sub-regional economic communities in the evaluation pro cess and make use of existing Memorandum of Understanding between members of the Joint Secretariat and other institutions to complement different areas of intervention.

As a follow-up to Fourth Meeting of the Follow-up Committee, it is envisaged to convene the Third Meeting of the Working Group for the follow up to the DND/ICPD in Dakar, Senegal, on 27-29 November 2002 to operationalize the Committee pro posals on ICPD+10. In this regard, the Meeting will, among others, discuss and adopt a country questionnaire for assess ing national implementation of DND/ICPD in the context of ICPD+10. It will be attended by the representatives of the following member Institutions of the Working Group: IFORD, RIPS, IDEP, CERPOD.OAU, ECA.ADB, UNFPAand UAPS.

Main recommendations on population and development issues in Africa

'NEPADACT': NGOs Appeal to the Fourth Meeting of the Follow-up Committee on the Implementation of the DND and PA-ICPD

Yaounde, Cameroon 28-31 January 2002

We, NGOs Present at the Fourth Meeting of the Foilow-up Committee on the Implementa tion of the DND and PA-ICPD, Yaounde, Cameroon 28-31 January 2002

• Having taken note of the documents produced by ECA and actively participated in the various deliberations, and more particularly, in those dealing with the priority actions of NEPAD;

Having positively appreciated the quality of work;

Considering that the attainment of the objectives of the priority areas of NEPAD will contribute to the resolution of Africa's development problems;

Considering the importance of our input in the implementation of the policy orienta tions of NEPAD at the grassroots;

Have laid the basis for coordination of our activities, to be known as NEPADACT

NEPADACT is a coordinating mechanism of African NGOs that are active in the areas relating to the priority actions of NEPAD. NEPADACT is open to all NGOs engaged in advocacy and activities tying in with NEPAD.

We launch an urgent appeal to governments and other development partners for acti and effective involvement of NEPADACT in the implementation of NEPAD

Constitutive/Launching NGOs:

Actions et initiatives pour le developpement sanitaire et social (AIDSS) Togo Association congolaise pour le bien-etre familial;

•. Agence pour la promotion des activites de population, Senegal Center for African Family Studies

Femmes rurales education et sante, Senegal

Forum des parlementaires africains et arabes sur la population et le developpement Human Resource Development Centre, Nigeria

Tunisian Institute for Sustainable Development and NGO Management

• Union for African Population Studies

The Follow-up Committee discussed achievements, best practices and con straints in the implementation of the DND/

ICPD. The meeting adopted a number of recommendations for the way forward on population and development issues in Africa in the following areas (i) Enabling political environment for the implementa tion of DND/ICPD; (ii) Health Policies; (iii) RH Programmes; (iv) Capacity building; (v) Data; (vi) Monitoring and evaluation mecha nisms; (vii) ICPD+10; (viii) HIV/AIDS; and, (ix) Population perspective of NEPAD.

More information and documents of the Follow-up Committee on the implementa tion of the DND/ICPD can be found in Population Infonnation Africa Website at the following address: http://www. uneca. org/

popia/

For more information contact: Mr Kamel Esseghairi, Executive Director,

Tunisian Institute for Sustainable Development and NGO Management, kesseghairi@yahoo. com

at

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Focus on 1CPD: -Africa's Population and Development Bulletin

Main recommendations of the Fourth Meeting of the Follow-up Committee Yaounde, Cameroon 28-31 January 2002

In charting the way forward, the Committee recommended, among others, that:

Priority should be given to conflict prevention and resolution, peace, resettlement of displaced people, democracy and good governance.

Priority should be given to the primary health care package addressing immunization, safe motherhood, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and other endemic illnesses.

Reproductive health programmes including family planning that target selected sub-groups, notably youth, adolescents and rural popula tions are needed.

Capacity building in support of the implementation of both DND and ICPD-PA should be strengthened.

Data collection, analysis and dissemination among countries including development of country information systems and databases should be supported and harmonized.

National and regional evaluation and monitoring of the implementation of DND and PA-ICPD should be strengthened.

The ten-year review process in the Africa region should focus on the following seven thematic areas: (i) Reproductive health; (ii) Youth; (iii) Gender; (iv) Migration and urbanization; (v) Poverty, population, environment and sustainable development, (vi) HIV/AIDS; (vii) Resource mobilization.

HIV/AIDS pandemic should be aggressively addressed regardless of the prevalence level of individual countries.

National capacities in HIV/AIDS testing and counseling should be strengthened. Women and men should be sensitized on the modes of transmission including mother-to-child transmission. Advocacy interventions directed to leaders and parliamentarians and IEC campaign targeting young people, especially girls, should be promoted.

Methods of HIV/AIDS data collection and analysis should be improved. Research on demographic and socio-economic impacts of HIV/AIDS and surveys on sexual behaviour should be encouraged.

Programmes of social support should be put in place in order to assist those infected or affected by HIV/AIDS, especially the elderly people and AIDS orphans.

Population concerns, including priority sectors identified by the meeting, should be considered within the implementation framework of NEPAD. The following priority areas are identified: (i) Poverty reduction and sustainable development; (ii) HIV/AIDS; (iii) Population dynamics and distribution; {iv) Data, information and communications; (v) Reproductive health and; (vi) Human resources development employment.

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The Importance, Needs and Constraints of Building a Statistical Information System in Africa for the Monitoring and Evaluation of Social Policies:

The Case of Cameroon

Omar Merabet, Institut de Formation et de Recherche D6mographique (IFORD)

Since the 1950s and more recently since the International Conference on Population and Development

was held, population policies have been prepared in many countries, programmes instituted and substantial

financing mobilized. It would therefore be useful to consider the issues raised by the evaluation of such policies and programmes. These are difficult issues that have not been sufficiently addressed.

Only when social programmes and policies are based on accurate elements of analysis can they become effective- The lack of reliable statistical data in areas ranging from education, health and nutrition to popula tion is a structural handicap in Africa South of the Sahara. It would be mistaken to believe that the statisti

cal deficit is only attributable to the lack of resources. While it is true that data collection operations are

relatively expensive, it is no less a fact that much work of this type has already been done but has disap peared for lack of a coherent policy in the management (archiving, database computerization, results dis

semination and so on) of information systems.

Can population policies and programmes be measured today in terms of ICPD/DND objectives?

The ICPD/DND programme of action should help African countries to implement their social policies and programmes by way of providing medium and long-term targets. To measure the impact of those policies and programmes relative to ICPD/DND objectives, the countries must not only have reliable statistics for measuring those impacts but also a specific regional policy for the generation and dissemination of statisti

cal information.

Table 1: General ICPD/DND objectives, targets and indicators

ICPD/DND

ICPD

ICPD/DND

ICPD

DND

General objectives

Increased access to family planning

Increased access to basic education

Reduction of infant mortality

Improvement of child nutrition

Improvement of maternal health

Improvement of health

care

Reduction of HIV/AIDS infection rates

Gender equality in education

Slowing down population growth

Increasing life expectancy at birth

Targets

20 % in 2000 and 40 % in 2010

Universal access to basic education by 2015

2/3 reduction by 2015 of children under 5 in 1990

2/3 reduction of the 1990 rate or 50/1000 by 2000 and below 35/1000 by 2015

50 % reduction by 2000 of the 1990 rate and a further 50% reduction by 2015

Universal access to primary health care

Removing by 2005 the gender disparity in primary and secondary schooling

Reducing population growth rates by 2.5% by 2000 and by 2% by 2010

Achieving 55 years at least by 2000, 70 years by 2005 and at least 75 years by 2015

Target indicators

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Gross primary school enrolment rate

Infant and child mortality rate

Infant mortality rate

Maternal mortality rate

Degree of access to primary health care

HIV/AIDS prevalence rate

Gross gender schooling rate

Population growth rate

Life expectancy at birth

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HIV/AIDS in Africa: - Africa's Population and Development Bulletin CASE STUDIES

Using the case of Cameroon, we can demonstrate that the ICPD/DND objectives are hard to quantify because substantial statistical information is lacking. And yet, since Cameroon hap pens to have a relatively reliable statistical production system, the question becomes how other countries less endowed in human and institutional resources are faring.

Ten key indicators of the ICPD/DND Programme of Action The programme sets a number of general objectives to be attained. Ten of them are listed in table 1. To quantify these objectives, key indicators designed to measure the medium and long-term impacts of the social programmes and policies deriv ing there from as well as from the respected results have been worked out in table 1.

The issue here is not to discuss the relevance of the pro gramme objectives but rather to find out the extent to which Afri can countries can measure, using the key indicators, the results achieved under their social policies and programmes.

There are a few differences between the DND and ICPD in terms of the objectives to be attained. Indeed, the DND seems to lay greater emphasis on population variables in the strict sense of the term. For example it includes objectives for reduc ing population growth and increasing life expectancy.

Using the ICPD/DND Programme of Action indicators to evaluate social policies and programmes

The first question to ask is how to quantify these objectives. Indeed, the available statistical data are highly fragmented and do not allow for accu rate measurement of the effect of population policies and programmes.

This raises the issue of a fundamental gap in the ICPD Pro gramme of Action, which totally overlooks the need for building statistical capacity. This gap makes it very difficult to conduct any reliable evaluation of the results achieved. The DND on its part addresses issues of data collection and analysis, informa tion dissemination, training and research. It states the need for constant effort to be made to improve demographic data and population statistics specifically by setting up statistical and civil registration systems.

Conducting an initial analysis of the situation in Cameroon The ICPD/DND indicators for Cameroon are described in table 2. Six of those indicators have been selected from the major sources of national statistics which are the following: the 1987 population census, the 1978 national fertility survey, the 1984 budget - consumption surveying, the 1986 national household survey and the 1991 and 1998 population and health surveys.

We can provide some idea of the situation in Cameroon 10 years after the DND. If we look at the status and development of the major indicators, the results are fairly worrying. Of the six indicators selected, only two seem to meet the DND target objectives of life expectancy at birth and contraceptive preva lence rate.

The DND set the natural rate of population reduction as the objective (approximated here by the population growth rate) at 2.5% per year by the year 2000 and at 2% by 2010. The population growth projections made, using the most recent census data, place the rate at about 2.9% on average over the period 1990-2000 and at 2.8% for the period 2000-2010. The

Indicator title

Life expectancy at birth (e)

Child mortality (1 to 5 years)

Infant mortality rate for a 5 year period before the survey

Maternal mortality rate per 100 000 births

Contraceptive prevalence rates by method of

contraception

Primary sources

MINPAT/BUCRE P MINEFI/DSCN MINPAT/BUCRE

P MINSANTE MINPAT/BUCRE

P MINSANTE

BUCREP/

M IN PAT MINER

Initial value Year(s)

1976-87

1963

1987

1960

1988

1991

value

2.9%

37

64.7 V

151%.

550

Mod.= 4,1 % Trad.=11,8%

All =16,1

Intermediate value year(s)

1988/95

1987

1991

1995

-

Value

2.87

53.4

69.2%.

65%.

520

-

Last available value Year(s)

1996/00

1998*

1998

Value

2.8*

55

72.3%.

94%.

504

Mod. = 7,1 % Tracl.=12,2%

All=19,3

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HIV/AIDS in Africa - Africa's Population and Development Bulletin CASE STUDIES

DND objective seems to be unattained but for lack of a recent census, the figures should be taken with extreme caution.

Life expectancy at birth

For the year 2000, the DND set a life expectancy at birth target of at least 55 years. The ICPD Programme of Action set the same target at 70 years by 2005 and 75 years by 2015. The data available for Cameroon shows a life expectancy at birth of 53.7 years in 1987 and 55 years in 1998. Two main conclu sions can be drawn from these results. First, the DND medium- term objective has been attained. On the other hand, if a long-term projection is made using the ICPD target, it is not likely that such levels will be attained. Indeed, the current level is explained by the spectacular increase between 1963 (of 37 years) and 1987 (53.7 years) placing Cameroon in the category of intermediate countries. Since that date, there has been a significant slow-down of the increase of life expectancy at birth.

Child mortality rate

The DND set the child mortality target (from 1 to 5 years old) for African countries at less than or equal to 70 per 1000 live births.

The child mortality rate in Cameroon declined significantly up to 1991. Since then, the level has been relatively high. The population and health survey conducted in 1991 revealed that from 1986 to 1991, out of 1000 children who lived to their first year, about 66 died before reaching the age of five. Seven years later, from 1988 to 1998, the level was still high and had increased to 72.3 per 1000.

Infant mortality rate for children under the age of one

The DND required African countries to set an infant mortality target of less than 50 per 1000 by the year 2000. The infant mortality rate in Cameroon has significantly declined even though the trend from 1996 has been on the rise. Nevertheless, the current level is relatively high and the 1991 population and health survey shows that from 1986 to 1991, out of 1000 live births, 65 died without reaching the age of one. Seven years later (from 1988 to 1998), the figure had increased to 77 per 1000.

Maternal mortality rates per 100,000

The DND recommended that African countries should prepare and implement programmes that would reduce maternal mortality by at least 50% of the 1990 level by the year 2000. Cameroon seems to have done well relative to Africa in general and to the other countries of Cen tral Africa. Indeed, the maternal mortality rate in Cameroon was esti mated at 500 deaths per 100,000 live births but if the DND objectives were considered, it would appear that from 1988 to 1998, the decline in

maternal mortality has been relatively low, moving from 550 to 500.

Contraceptive prevalence rate

The DND recommended the use of all proven methods of con traception in family planning, including traditional methods, in order to double the contraceptive prevalence rate from 10%

to about 20% by the year 2000 and 40% by the year 2010.

The contraceptive prevalence rate increased significantly from 16.1% in 1991 to 19.3% in 1998 both for men and women but still remains low. These rates are all the lower when it comes to modern methods of contraception. The DND objective seems to have been attained even if the long-term objective of 40% by 2010 may be difficult to achieve.

The need for building an efficient statistical system The DND recommendations could have provided a basis for building a social statistics information system in Africa. It is very interesting to link the concern for improving population data with the involvement and coordination of training and research insti tutions in Africa but it must be said that the African countries have done little to implement the recommendations. This has naturally made it difficult, if not impossible, to evaluate popula tion policies and programmes effectively. The case of Camer oon speaks volumes in that despite specific efforts to improve the national statistics system, it has been virtually impossible to secure reliable and periodic statistics on such essential sectors as health, education or employment.

The reason for this is not that the financial resources are lacking but rather that a comprehensive policy for generating statistics is lacking. The situation is even more alarming at the regional level because it is now impossible to compare the ICPD/DND programme of action indicators among the countries because of the problems with collection methodologies, data production periods and information access.

Extracted from IFORD paper "Monitoring of population dynamics and population programmes" at the Fourth Meeting of the Follow-up Com mittee on the Implementation of the Dakar/Ngor Declaration (DND) and the Programme ofAction of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD-PA), Yaounde, Cameroon, 28 to 31 January 2002.

For more information contact: [email protected]

12

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o03

Major Issues in African Migration: Implication for Social Policy

Menna S. Kebede, Student in International Social Work, University of Calgary, Canada

o0)

Although migration is a global phenomenon, the demographic, economic and political situation in most Afri can countries is likely to stimulate migration for many years to come. Of the 150 million people living outside of their country of origin in the world, more than 50 million are estimated to be Africans. Migration entails a number of issues for the migrants, as well as for the countries of origin, transit and destination. As migration intensifies policy makers should pay closer attention to the emerging issues and address those proactively.

Major issues in African migration

Brain drain: Brain drain, or the migration of highly skilled and trained individuals, is an issue that requires special attention in Africa. It is estimated that Africa has lost a third of its professionals to the developed countries between 1960-1987 and still 23,000 academics and 50,000 members of the middle to high-level management are leaving the continent yearly. On the one hand, 40,000 African nationals holding PhD degrees are living outside the continent. On the other hand, sub-Saharan Africa spends $US4 billion yearly on technical assistance, including the cost of hiring more than 100,000 foreign experts. Brain drain is a major impediment to African development as it depletes many countries of the human resources necessary to build their nations, especially after a conflict or a disaster. It also contributes to the widening gap between rich and poor countries.

There is however, a trend towards a "reverse brain drain" - tempting people who have migrated to industrial countries to move to developing countries. Transnational corporations are one of the major catalysts of this trend, as they are very keen to hire people with local language skills. Organisations such as the Interna tional Organisation for Migration (IOM) also play a role in this area, through their Return of Qualified African Nationals Programme, which is sponsored by the EU.

The feminization of migration: In the past, women migrated as accompanying family members or remained at home to care for their children. This picture is changing in sub-Saharan Africa, where women represent 48% of the migrant population in Africa in 1990 (compared to 41% in 1965). Although the number of women migrants may have not increased at a significant pace, what has changed is that women are now migrants on their own terms, and not necessarily as accompanying members of the family. The feminization of migra tion may be an indication of women's increased empowerment. However, it has also increased their vulner ability, as most of them fall prey to traffickers.

Human smuggling: The increase in the pull and push factors for potential African migrants on the one hand, and the increasingly tight immigration policies in developed countries on the other, have created more room for people traffickers. In most cases, trafficked migrants face appalling conditions when they arrive at their destination, particularly women and children who are exploited, abused, forced into prostitution or sweat shop labour, tortured, beaten or worse. This has been observed particularly among migrants from Eastern Africa to the Gulf countries, as well as from Western and Central Africa towards the wealthier, oil-producing countnes.

HIV/AIDS: HIV/AIDS is the leading cause of death in Africa, killing more people than malaria and tuberculo sis. There is some controversy with regards to the precise connection between HIV/AIDS and migration, but data collected from East Africa suggest that population movement is linked to the spread of HIV/AIDS.

People in transit or who are away from their families and who do not have access to the receiving country's prevention and treatment mechanisms are at a heightened risk of contracting the virus.

Racial discrimination and intolerance: Perhaps, the most important issue affecting African migrants, espe cially in developed countries, is racial discrimination and intolerance. Racism has many faces, and can be overt or covert, institutionalized or systemic. Nonetheless, the impact it has on its victims is always the same: it is dis-empowering.

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HIV/AIDS in Africa -Africa's Population and Development Bulletin CASE STUDIES

Africa's Refugees and Internally Displaced People

While Africans constitute only 12% of the global population, around 28% (i.e. 3.2 million) of the world's 11.5 million refugees and just under 50% (i.e. 9.5 million) of the world's 20 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) are to be found in Africa. The total number of displaced Africans thus stands in the region of 12.7 million. To this number can be added more than two million returnees, who, according to UNHCR, have not been able to reintegrate in their country of origin and who continue to need some form of international protection and assis tance.

Of the top 20 refugee producing' countries in the world, nine are to be found in Africa. Twenty five African states have refugee populations in excess of 10,000, while 11 of those countries are currently hosting a refugee population of 100,000 or more. According to the U.S. Com mittee for Refugees, ten of the 24 countries with the highest ratio of refugees to local people are member States of the Organization of African Unity (OAU). In terms of IDPs, the figures are equally striking: Africa provides ten of the 20 countries with the largest IDP populations.

The headline figures cited here do little to reveal the complex nature and patterns of displace ment that have characterised the African continent in recent years. That complexity assumes a number of different forms.

First, while Africa continues to produce a disproportionate number of the world's refugees in relation to its overall population, the continent's share of the global refugee problem has actually diminished in recent years. Thus in 1994, around 47% of the refugees recorded by UNHCR were to be found in Africa. By 1998, the proportion had dropped significantly to its current level of 28%. In absolute terms, the number of refugees in Africa fell from 6.75 million in 1994 to 3.2 million in 1998.

Second, as these figures suggest, the movement of refugees in Africa is very much a two-way process: while some displaced people have been leaving their own country to seek safety in neighbouring and nearby countries, others have been moving back to their homeland. Thus, according to the UNHCR statistics, the three largest refugee exoduses of 1998 all took place in Africa: from Angola (33,000), Sierra Leone (280,000) and Sudan (37,000). But so did the two largest repatriation movements: to Liberia (236,000) and Sierra Leone (195,000).

Third, it is of some significance that the recent decline in the number of refugees in Africa has been matched by a growth in the continent's population of internally displaced persons (up from around 5.0 million in the early 1990s to a present total estimated to be in the region of 9.5 million). The precise reason for the rising number of IDPs in Africa, as well as its relation ship to the decline in the size of the continent's refugee population has yet to be explored.

Source: Jeff Crisp (2000). Africa's refugees: patterns, problems and policy challenges. In New Issues in Refugee Research, Working paper No. 28. UNHCR, Evaluation and Policy

In the country of destination, many migrants live in urban areas characterized by a lack, or inadequate provision of basic public services, or sub-standard facilities. They have little or no access to public education, health care or employment, a situation that often amounts to a violation of their social and economic rights. Migrants often find themselves marginalized from the labour market and concentrated in sectors of economic activity without health, safety or legal protection. The situation is worse for irregular or undocumented migrants. Women and children migrants face particularly serious difficulties, as they are increasingly subject to trafficking, forced prostitution and pornography.

The rights of migrants in their new countries have been one of the main issues addressed in several UN documents. These include the International Conference on Population and Devel opment, Programme of Action (1994), the Africa Dakar/Ngor Declaration (1992) and the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of Migrant Workers and members of their families (1999). However, as world migration flow has

increased, so has the prevalence of racism. In order to mobilize the inter national community against racism, the United Nations had convened an interna tional conference on this topic in August 2001, in Durban, South Africa.

Implications for social policies

Migration is usually seen as positive when it offers those involved better economic and social opportunities. It can also be seen as a threat to the sovereignty and security of transit and receiving countries, and as a hurdle to the development of countries of origin. Nevertheless, the benefits of migration can be maximized when it occurs in a voluntary and coordi nated fashion. Although the formulation of migration policy is the sovereign right of States, individual national efforts alone do not suffice to address the contemporary migration-related issues affecting African nations. As per one of the recommenda tions in the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD-PA), co-opera tion at the global, regional and subregional levels are necessary to address the multi-faceted nature of migration.

Migration is a complex phenomenon that occurs in tandem with demographic, economic and political forces. Globalization has also added to the complexity of migration, both in scope and magnitude. As such, any policy formulation on this topic should take into consideration the political and socio-economic contexts within which migration occurs. However, most of the policies one encounters in Africa today are statements of general principles, with little attention paid to the complexities of migration patterns and limited implications for government programs and services.

One of the main aspects of social policy on migration should be the prevention and management of political conflicts. Conflicts are one of the major factors contributing to African migration in general, and to the refugee crisis in particular. The prevention and management of conflicts require strategies to address the root causes of conflict, which in turn leads to new dynamics not only within countries concerned, but also regionally. Therefore, policies on migration should be concerned not only at the national

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HIV/AIDS in Africa: -Africa's Population and Development Bulletin CASE STUDIES

level, but also at the sub-regional and continental levels.

Sustainable development in the migrants' country of origin should also be a priority for policy makers. Migration is fuelled by a desire to find better opportunities elsewhere. This percep tion is being communicated faster and more efficiently through high-tech information flows as well as by the changing eco nomic and trading patterns, and the availability of easier and cheaper transportation. Although this perception may be based on some truth, it does not negate the fact that African countries have the potential to meet the economic and social needs of their citizens. Therefore, governments have to enhance their efforts towards the sustained development of the continent. As stated in one of the ICPD-PA recommendations, one way of achieving this is by establishing links with Africans in the Dias pora, to contribute to the development of the continent. Another way is by paying special attention to the linkage between popu lation, environment and food production.

In addition to the above, two prevention-oriented types of poli cies, interventionist types of policies, are also required to deal with the plight of millions of migrants. As such, policies to remedy the suffering of internationally and internally displaced people should continue to be refined and more co-ordinated to reflect the emerging issues in the migration discourse. New

policies related to the feminization of migration and to the needs of refugee children should be put in place in every country.

There should also be a concerted effort to make information and preventative mechanisms on HIV/AIDS available to migrant workers and refugees.

Finally, it is important to create and maintain dialogue among sending, transit and receiving countries. In an era of globalized economy marked by the free movement of goods and services, no country will be immune from the impact of migration. There fore, the need for the exchange of information among countries has never been more pronounced.

Sources.

McKinley, B. Migration in Africa: Globalization and Prospects for Regional Mechanisms. Presented in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on October

18, 2000

Sethi, Meera. Return and Reintegration of Qualified African Nationals.

Presented in Addis Ababa, 22-24 February 2000 at the Regional Con ference on Brain Drain and Capacity Building in Africa.

Stalker, P. (2000)- Workers without Frontiers: The Impact of Globaliza tion on International Migration. Colorado, USA: Lynne Rienner Publish ers.

UNECA (1996). Causes and Consequences of International Migration in Africa. Addis Ababa.

UNHCR (2000). Migration and Trafficking. Available: http://

www.unhchr.ch/html/racism/

15

Africa's population and development bulletin

Economic Commission for Africa

Africa's Population and Development Bulletin

2002

Economic Commission for Africa

Africa's Population and Development Bulletin

2002

United Nations. Material from this Bulletin may be freely quoted or reprinted but acknowledgement is

Publications are also posted in the ECA Population Information Africa (POPIA) website at the following

Contents

Editorial

Africa's Population and Development Bulletin contributes to the SDD mission to support sustain

social development, agriculture and economic livelihoods, and environment. The Bulletin is a tool through which the Division shares analysis of the nexus issues in Africa, and is also an advocacy

The general topics included in this Bulletin are recurrent and cover population and sustainable

Data Corner, highlights the work of an NGO, and features Research Notes, among other areas.

SDD would also appreciate information on recently held and upcoming events particularly the

In order to be as responsive as possible, the editors would highly appreciate feedback from read

attached to previous Bulletins. Your comments and suggestions have helped us evaluate the

Implementation of Agenda 21 in Africa -10 Years after Rio

United Nations

factors into account. Africa should invest in its human resources if

such human resource development as well as to enhancement of

The article is extracted from Report on Review and Appraisal of

African Preparations for the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development

Ousmane Laye, SSD/ECA

s

Africa's State of Environment and Food Security

The Fourth Meeting of Africa's Follow-up

Committee on the implementation of the DND/ICPD discussed the Population Perspectives in the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD)

The Importance, Needs and Constraints of Building a Statistical Information System in Africa for the Monitoring and Evaluation of Social Policies:

The Case of Cameroon

Omar Merabet, Institut de Formation et de Recherche D6mographique (IFORD)

was held, population policies have been prepared in many countries, programmes instituted and substantial

relatively expensive, it is no less a fact that much work of this type has already been done but has disap peared for lack of a coherent policy in the management (archiving, database computerization, results dis

Can population policies and programmes be measured today in terms of ICPD/DND objectives?

Table 1: General ICPD/DND objectives, targets and indicators

Major Issues in African Migration: Implication for Social Policy