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How long will you live, how many babies will you have?

 

 

Students at the Population report seminar - challenged to ask how long will

I live, how many babies will I have?

 

More must be done in Timor-Leste to improve the lives of women and girls, says UN in Dili.

 

A Woman in Timor-Leste is almost twice as likely to die in childbirth compared to a woman in Indonesia;  20 times more likely than a woman in Portugal;  and women in Timor-Leste are much more likely to die in child birth than almost anywhere in Asia.

These are some of the important findings of the ‘’State of The World Population 2019’’ report by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). The report has data from all countries in the world, going back to the 1960s.

It shows that nearly all elements of population data have improved in Timor-Leste since then, but there is a long way to go before this country has similar statistics to countries like The Philippines, Portugal and Indonesia.

For example Timor-Leste has one of the highest fertility rates in Asia, (The number of babies women have). But unfortunately people in Timor-Leste are dying about twelve years younger than people in Portugal. There is more detail in the table at the bottom of this article.

Timor-Leste is grouped within the ‘’least developed countries’’ along with, for example, Solomon Islands, which also has high birth rates and where, like in Timor-Leste, too many women are dying in child birth.

The report is titled: ’’Unfinished Business – the pursuit of rights and choices for all.’’

The UNFPA Timor-Leste Country Representative, Ronny Lindstrom, opened a seminar on the State of The World Population 2019 report at the National University of Timor-Leste discussing the information, by highlighting the importance of population programs.

 ‘’In the past 50 years, the global movement to empower women to make their own decisions about whether, when, how often, and with whom to become pregnant gained momentum,’’ Mr. Lindstrom said. ‘’Can we do better for women and girls of today? If history is a guide, the answer is yes.’’

 The right to decide freely and responsibly on the timing and spacing of children was acknowledged in Cairo, in 1994, at the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), where 179 governments endorsed a global program of action that linked women’s empowerment, rights and sexual and reproductive health to sustainable development.’’  

UNFPA is part of the United Nations in Timor-Leste. The UN is an impartial, rights-based and strategic partner supporting the Government of Timor-Leste to fulfill its commitments to advance the 2030 agenda on Sustainable Development Goals Agenda 2030.

There has been a clear break with the peace keeping and political leadership of the past and the UN in Timor-Leste is now entirely focused on sustainable development.

UNFPA 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. UNFPA reaches millions of women and young people in 155 countries and territories, including Timor-Leste.

 You can read or download a copy of the report here : https://timor-leste.unfpa.org/en/publications/state-world-population-report-swop-2019

Image result for unfpa logo

 #swop2019 #unfinishedbusiness

 

Indicator

Timor-Leste

PNG

Solomon Islands

Philippines

Indonesia

Australia

Portugal

Population, million

1.4

8.6

0.6

108.1

269.5

25.1

10.3

Life expectancy at birth, years

70

66

72

70

70

83

82

Adolescent birth rate/1000 girls aged 15-19. 2006-2017

50

-

78

47

48

12

8

Child marriage rate by age 18 (%)

19

21

21

15

14

-

-

Total fertility rate per woman 1994/2019

6.1/5.2

4.7/3.5

5.3/3.7

4.1/2.8

2.8/2.3

1.8/1.8

1.5/1.2

Enrolment rate primary school m/f

79/82

80/75

69/70

95/96

95/90

96/97

97/96

Secondary school enrolment rate m/f

55/64

36/30

-

60/72

76/78

93/94

93/94

Contraceptive Prevalence rate, women aged 15-49 (%)

29

37

32

56

61

66

70

Maternal mortality ratio deaths/100,000 live births

215

215

114

114

126

6

10

Births attended by skilled health personnel (2006-2015) (%)

57

53

86

73

93

100

99

Unmet need for family planning, women aged 15-49

25

25

25

17

13

11

9

Contact us

UN House, Caicoli Street
Dili, Timor-Leste
PO BOX 008
Telp: +670 333 333
E-mail: info@un.org.tl