Catherine Wedd, Member of Parliament and Chair of the New Zealand Parliamentarians Group on Population and Development; 

Ingrid Leary, Member of Parliament and Acting Deputy Chair of the New Zealand Parliamentarians Group on Population and Development;  

Hon. Nicola Grigg, Minister for Women, Minister of State for Trade and Associate Minister of Agriculture; 

Honorable members of the New Zealand Parliamentarians Group on Population and Development;

Civil Society – stalwart advocates and defenders of UN charter and human rights: Jackie Edmond, Gill Greer, Joy Dunsheath;

Staff of Sexual Wellbeing Aotearoa;

Friends from UN Association New Zealand, Kari Dickie; 

Dear MPs, guests, dear partners, and colleagues,

Kia ora e hoa.

Before we unpack the findings of UNFPA’s State of World Population 2024 report, I wish to offer my deep condolences to the Māori community and all New Zealanders on the passing of Kiingi Tuheitia. As a strong advocate for the rights of Indigenous people, especially their health rights, Kiingi Tuheitia's legacy will continue to inspire us all. May he rest in eternal peace. 

Thank you for being here today to discuss the vital issue of sexual and reproductive health and rights.

Since the International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo in 1994, where we set out to ensure that every person’s sexual and reproductive health is at the heart of development, the world has made significant progress.

Over the past three decades, we have seen substantial improvements as a result of this global commitment.

Across the world, unintended pregnancies, maternal mortality, and new HIV infections have declined. More women are serving in parliaments, and over 160 countries have implemented laws against domestic violence. 

In Asia and the Pacific, we’ve seen similar strides: Child marriage has steadily declined, allowing more girls to pursue education; adolescent pregnancies have halved; people across the region are living longer and healthier lives; and maternal mortality declined by 61 per cent. 

Despite these successes, the rate of progress has slowed, and in some cases, it has stalled altogether. Millions of people, especially the most marginalized, remain far behind. More often than not, those left behind have the face of a woman or a girl.

In Asia and the Pacific, preventable maternal deaths continue at an alarming rate. Every hour, more than six women in the region die during pregnancy and childbirth. This statistic is not just a number; it represents the loss of life, the devastation of families, and the stark reminder that our work is far from over.

For example, in Papua New Guinea, the maternal mortality rate is 215 deaths for every 100,000 live births, one of the highest in the region. In contrast, here in New Zealand, that figure drops to less than seven deaths per 100,000 live births, highlighting the stark inequalities within the region.

Access to modern contraceptives varies dramatically based on ethnicity, refugee and migration status, education, and location. 

In Timor-Leste, only 26 per cent of married women use modern contraceptive methods, compared to 76 per cent in Thailand. Such disparities are not just statistics; they are the lived realities of millions of women who are denied the right to make decisions about their bodies and their futures.

Dear friends,

These inequalities persist not only between countries but within them, creating deep disparities that disproportionately affect those who are already marginalized. 

I saw this myself, a few months ago, when I visited a remote health clinic in a village in North Tarawa, Kiribati, where I observed a nurse inject a woman with a contraceptive implant while another woman used her mobile phone’s torch to provide the necessary lighting. With such limited resources, anything could go wrong at any moment. 

In the room next door, I noticed line markings on the cement floor. I was told that these lines indicated the slanting where the water would drain after washing the floor – something they had to do often. Why? 

Because they deliver babies on the floor due to the lack of beds. I also visited the store room, which had no refrigerator for cold supplies. For women living in such remote areas, how can we do better to ensure they receive the care and attention they so desperately need and that they deserve?

This is the reality for many women in remote areas across the Asia-Pacific region, where resources are scarce, and healthcare facilities are underfunded and understaffed.

Health systems in the region are further weakened by displacement, racial discrimination, and misinformation. Women and girls with disabilities, around 350 million in the region, are up to ten times more likely to experience sexual abuse. 

Indigenous women, particularly those in remote areas, are less likely to receive antenatal care, less likely to give birth under the care of a skilled birth attendant, and more likely to die from causes related to pregnancy and childbirth. These inequalities are not just statistical anomalies; they are the direct result of systems that have failed to address the needs of the most vulnerable. No country is excluded. 

These inequalities should not be politicized or used as an accusation of bias; they should not be points of division that push people behind – rather they are and should be entry points for accelerating progress. 

Because everywhere we look, we see gaps, and those gaps are widening. Stalling progress will turn into a reversal of progress. 

If we earnestly wish to tackle inequalities and place human rights front and centre of all our societies, then all of us need to have honest, difficult conversations to address the legacies of the past. 

Anxiety over high fertility rates, low fertility and global migration is leading to xenophobia and turning women’s bodies into battlegrounds. Yet these trends – population growth in some places, population ageing in others, accelerating migration – are unlikely to change.

But, dear friends, we know what we can change. We must redouble our efforts.

This is why UNFPA invests in initiatives like strengthening the Maternal and Perinatal Death Surveillance and Response systems across Asia and the Pacific. Through this response system, we support health facilities in systematically identifying and analyzing maternal and perinatal deaths. This crucial work helps us identify gaps and improve the overall service delivery and quality of care for pregnant women. 

UNFPA also invests in strengthening the midwifery workforce across the region. Well-trained and skilled midwives are essential for improving maternal and newborn health, particularly in underserved areas. 

Their expertise not only reduces maternal deaths, but also ensures safer childbirth and empowers women with the quality care that they need before, during, and after pregnancy. We need more midwives, and that profession deserves better. Midwives save lives.

Our regional flagship initiative, kNOwVAWdata, has empowered us to confront violence against women by building critical regional and national capacity for safely measuring prevalence. 

Through ethical and quality data, UNFPA assists authorities to act by designing strategies and interventions that help to prevent gender-based violence. This also includes our work in addressing the rise of gender-based violence in online spaces, which is increasing with rapid digitalization, particularly in Asia and the Pacific. 

While we are doing a lot, we must do more. 

We must redouble our efforts to achieve comprehensive, universal, and inclusive healthcare, grounded in human rights and modern science.

We must work in communities with men and boys as they are crucial to eradicating harmful social practices and gender norms.  Men need to step up and men need to speak up.

It is only when every woman and every girl has access to comprehensive sexuality education, and the choice of contraception, and when countries and communities end gender-based violence, and promote gender equality, that we can make universal progress. 

Such advancements contribute to trillions of dollars to the global economy and unleashes gains in education, productivity, workforce participation, and human well-being. With Asia and the Pacific home to half the world’s population, this region holds immense potential to unleash these gains.

But we cannot do this alone. 

I must take this opportunity to thank New Zealand for being a longstanding partner to UNFPA in our shared journey to advance the rights and well-being of women and girls. 

Your generous contributions, particularly in the face of humanitarian crises in Cox’s Bazar, supporting the Rohingya refugees, and in Afghanistan, providing humanitarian response support, have made a profound difference in countless lives across our region. 

New Zealand has also joined the UNFPA Supplies Partnership to support the Pacific Plan, providing essential reproductive health commodities across 14 Pacific Island countries and contributing over half a million US dollars in 2023. 

Whether it is providing essential sexual and reproductive health services in disaster-stricken areas or supporting programmes that empower women and girls to make informed choices about their futures, your partnership has been instrumental in ensuring that even the most vulnerable are not left behind. 

The ICPD mandate has been furthered in this region and beyond in no small part as a result of your fierce and tireless civil society, your engaged and action-oriented MPs, and your successive governments who chose to lead. 

New Zealand’s dedication to global solidarity and human rights is an example for the world, and we are deeply thankful for your continued support.

It is this same spirit of global solidarity that helped the world move forward after Cairo, 30 years ago, and it is global solidarity that will help countries renew their commitment and promise to uphold people’s sexual and reproductive health and choices by placing them at the center of population policies.

All of you, all the amazing defenders and activists of sexual and reproductive health and rights, all our frontline service providers – these are the threads of hope we need to sustain.

We have made incredible progress by working together, and we must continue to advance towards a world of rights and choices for all—by pushing forward those left behind. Global solidarity is key. No exceptions. No exclusions. Distance and numbers cannot be an excuse for inaction.

The incredibly resident women and girls in our communities across this beautiful region deserve that solidarity.

Naku te rourou nau te rourou ka ora ai te iwi.
With your basket and my basket, the people will live. 

Thank you all very much for your time, and thank you to the New Zealand Parliamentarians Group on Population and Development and Sexual Wellbeing Aotearoa for collaborating to organize this event. 

We rely on our parliamentarians and CSOs to keep us honest and focused. I trust you will find the report informative for your critical work and I look forward to our continued discussions today and to shaping a better future for all women and girls across Asia and the Pacific and beyond. 

Ngā mihi nui.