CPD 1997

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Summary

The thirtieth session of the Commission on Population and Development was held at United Nations Headquarters from 24 to 28 February 1997. Its central theme was international migration, with special emphasis on the linkages between migration and development, including gender issues and the family.

The documents before the Commission included a report on world population monitoring, focusing on the theme of the session. The report provided a summary of recent information on selected aspects of international migration and covered such topics as the international migration agenda from Bucharest to Cairo; migration dynamics; international migration policies; documented and undocumented migrants; refugees and asylum-seekers; labour migration; gender issues; and interlinkages between migration and development. Other reports covered the monitoring of population programmes; activities on international migration of the Administrative Committee on Coordination (ACC) Task Force on Basic Social Services for All; activities of intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations in the area of international migration; flows of financial resources in international assistance for population; programme performance and implementation in the field of population in 1996; proposed programme of work for the biennium 1998-1999; world demographic trends; and a report responding to the agreed conclusions 1996/1, adopted by the Economic and Social Council at its substantive session of 1996, on coordination of the United Nations system activities for poverty eradication.

The Commission considered follow-up actions to the recommendations of the Conference on Population and Development, adopting two resolutions in that regard. It also recommended to the Economic and Social Council the adoption of a draft resolution in which the Council, inter alia, would urge both the Statistics Division and the Population Division of the United Nations Secretariat, along with other relevant organizations, to collaborate in the dissemination of the new set of recommendations on statistics of international migration, and call upon all relevant organs, organizations and programmes of the United Nations system and other intergovernmental, regional and subregional organizations to collaborate and coordinate their efforts in examining international migration and development. Recognizing the need for further analysis of international migration and development and the linkages among the social, economic, political and cultural factors related to international migration and development, the Commission noted with interest that the ACC Task Force on Basic Social Services for All would be holding a technical symposium on international migration in 1998. Lastly, with regard to reporting requirements, the Commission requested that the material normally included in the report on the activities of intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations be integrated into the reports on world population monitoring and the monitoring of population programmes. The Commission decided to further consider the issue of reporting requirements at its next session.

As in previous sessions, the Commission held a general debate during which members exchanged views and national experiences in the area of population, particularly with regard to the implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development.

In reviewing the implementation of the programme of work in the field of population in 1996 and the proposed programme of work for the biennium 1998-1999, the Commission expressed appreciation for the high quality of the work of the Population Division. The Commission adopted a resolution in which it stressed the importance of continuing the basic work of the Population Division, emphasized the importance of the Population Division's role as the secretariat to the Commission and underlined the need to further enhance the Division's efficiency, effectiveness and capacity.

The Commission also approved the draft provisional agenda for its thirty-first session, in 1998, and adopted the report of its thirtieth session.

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