We, the advocates, activists, youth, academics and other stakeholders participating at the 8th Asia Pacific Conference on Reproductive and Sexual & Health Rights (APCRSHR) held on February 23-26, 2016 in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar have gathered to strengthen the voice of all people in the Asia Pacific region to exchange knowledge and experiences and to call for full recognition of SRHR.
Acknowledging that unwavering commitment from all government and non-government leaders, activists and other stakeholders in the region will provide momentum to SRHR and sustainable development,
Recognising that sexual and reproductive health is a critical component in health, human rights and development programmes and forms an integral part of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),
Reaffirming the important messages emanating from previous APCRSHR conferences: strengthening the quality of reproductive health (2001); taking action to advance the importance of SRHR and gender equality and equity for overall socio-economic development (2003); advocating for inclusion of SRHR in national & local policies, plans and budgets (2005); alleviating poverty especially for young people and holding governments accountable for RH responsibilities (2007); emphasizing the individual and collective commitment to ensure gender equality and equity (2009); respecting the significant role and independence of CSOs (2011); and enabling universal access to SRHR (2014),
Noting the high rate of maternal & child mortality, number of adolescents and young adults with limited access to SRH information and services in spite of their vulnerability, heightened pandemics of STIs and HIV/AIDS,
Knowing the high returns of investing in young people's development and health including SRHR, the need for optimal resource mobilization, accountability, sustainability, and commitment towards regional integration, networking and public-private-partnerships,
We reiterate our commitment to the full realization of SRHR for all and to take all necessary actions to:
- Strengthen and implement rights-based SRHR laws and policies, advocate evidence-based good practices and innovative approaches in SRHR advocacy,
- Ensure the cross-cutting role of SRHR in attaining the SDGs,
- Encourage governments, development partners and the private sector to allocate more resources and strengthen accountability mechanisms for SRHR,
- Eliminate legal barriers to the provision of early, safe and accessible termination of unwanted pregnancy in the Asia-Pacific region,
- Elimination of institutional disrespect for LGBTQI, and fostering international respect for sexual rights,
- Support comprehensive SRHR education policies, programs and services especially for young people, women, the vulnerable and other key affected populations,
- Mainstream SRHR, gender equity and youth empowerment initiatives,
- Strengthen existing structures for promoting SRHR, gender equity and the meaningful involvement of the youth within the Asia Pacific Region,
- Establish mechanisms for a harmonised and standardised database that enables better monitoring and evaluation of SRHR policies and programmes across the region and sub-regions, and
- Ensure the exchange of South-to-South cooperation through sharing of experiences, expertise, best practices and lessons learned in the area of SRHR.
We make these commitments in recognition of the critical linkages amongst population dynamics, poverty, SRHR and gender on sustainable development as articulated in the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) Programme of Action, the 1995 Beijing Platform for Action, the 2000 UN Millennium Declaration and 2015 SDGs.
