From Asia to Europe, reproductive rights – not birth rate – should be focus, says UN

United Nations Population Fund’s annual report talks of widespread anxiety about global population, expected to peak at around 10.4 billion in the 2080s

But it says focus should be on women’s fertility autonomy; nearly half all pregnancies unintended, with 500,000 births every year among girls aged 10-14

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Children fly kites in Beijing. The UN says the world should think much more about women’s right to choose when or if to have children. Photo: Xinhua

Published: 5:12pm, 19 Apr 2023

Rather than fixating on the impact of the world’s soaring population, the world should look at women’s reproductive rights to shore up “demographic resilience”, the UN has said.

The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) – the UN’s sexual and reproductive health agency – acknowledged there was widespread anxiety over the size of the world’s population, which is expected to peak at around 10.4 billion during the 2080s.

But the UNFPA said the focus should be on giving women more power to control when and how they have children.

“The question is: ‘Can everyone exercise their fundamental human right to choose the number and spacing of their children?’ Sadly, the answer is a resounding no,” said UNFPA chief Natalia Kanem on Wednesday.

She said that “44 per cent, almost half of women, are unable to exercise bodily autonomy. Unable to make choices about contraception, healthcare and whether or with whom to have sex. And globally, nearly half of all pregnancies are unintended”.

She said countries with the highest fertility rates contribute the least to global warming and suffer the most from its impact.

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