International Conference on Population and Development, Cairo, 1994

The International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD or Cairo), convened under the auspices of the United Nations, took place in Cairo, Egypt, September 5-13, 1994. It brought together representatives from over 180 governments and 1,254 nongovernmental organizations.

IWHC recognized that ICPD offered a rare opportunity for public acknowledgment of the growing strength and capacity of the international women's health movement. The conference presented women's organizations with a chance to make their mark as players in the world community, and to shape the values, design, and direction of population policies into the twenty-first century. With our Brazilian colleague Cidadania Estudo, Pesquisa, Informação e Ação, IWHC organized an international conference to help prepare for ICPD. The 215 women who gathered at this preparatory conference in Rio generated a 21-point statement to ensure that women's perspectives and experiences were considered and acted upon at ICPD. Throughout the year, IWHC facilitated the participation of reproductive health advocates by funding 85 colleagues to attend a preparatory meeting at UN Headquarters in New York and ICPD itself.

The Programme of Action, adopted by 179 governments, marked a new understanding among world bodies—that population and development are inextricably linked, and that women's empowerment is the key to both. And, for the first time, the reproductive and sexual health and rights of women became a central element in an international agreement on population and development. 

Click here to read the Report of the International Conference on Population and Development (Cairo, 5-13 Sept. 1994).

To access the Programme of Action directly in English, French, and Spanish, visit UNFPA's website here.

Click here for an overview of the ICPD Programme of Action.