One of the main features of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in Cairo in 1994 was the engagement of civil society organizations (CSOs) in the process. This commitment has continued ever since and is now highly visible as part of the activities already underway to celebrate ICPD+25.

The UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) region includes not only countries in Europe but also those in North America and Central Asia and Israel. As such, the region is diverse, but there is a common thread among CSOs in all its countries to promote and support the implementation of the ICPD Programme of Action. This includes participation in the UNECE Regional Conference on ICPD+25, Enabling Choices: Population Dynamics and Sustainable Development, which is being organized jointly by UNECE and UNFPA, and will  be held in Salle XVIII in the Palais des Nations, Geneva, Switzerland, 1-2 October 2018.

It is, however, important for CSOs to be able to coordinate their inputs into such a process. This will be done through a period of dialogue in the weeks leading up to the end of September 2018 with a one-day Civil Society Consultation – Partners for change: Civil society engagement in ICPD+25 in the UNECE regionbeing held at the Warwick Hotel, rue de Lausanne 14, 1201 Geneva, Switzerland on Sunday 30 September 2018 from 08.30 – 18.00.

The outcomes of, and recommendations from the Consultation will be presented during the UNECE Conference and will also be forwarded to the UN Secretary-General for inclusion in his report for the 2018 session of the UN Commission on Population and Development, which will consider the “Review and appraisal of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development at the global, regional and national levels.”

In order to ensure the maximum inputs into the process and the fullest involvement of CSOs, this Partners for Change website has been set up.

The UN report covering trends and developments since the last review in 2014 will inform discussions at the UNECE Conference. The report and the Conference outcome, in the form of a Rapporteurs’ summary, will feed into the global review to take place at the 52nd Session of the Commission on Population and Development (CPD) in 2019.