Caribbean males hurting regional development

THE BEHAVIOUR of Caribbean males is seriously damaging the region’s development and steps must be taken to urgently address this problem.

This was one of the findings contained in the Declaration of the Caribbean sub-regional meeting to assess implementation of the Programme of Action (POA) of the 1994 Cairo International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD). The meeting was held over the last two days at the Crowne Plaza and was attended by 21 Caribbean nations. Ag Director of the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) Daniel Blanchard said the Declaration is “a red flag to young Caribbean males” and it was important that three sections of the Declaration referred to them. Sections 5 (d), (e) and (f) of the Declaration call for: “Promotion of men’s responsiblities in regards to their own reproductive health and in support of their partners. Promotion of the need for evidence-based information on the under-performance of boys in the education system. A comprehensive approach to preventing and addressing the consequences of gender-based violence.” There is also reference to Caribbean males in Section 3 of the Declaration which states: “Recognise the rights of adolescents and youth to access youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health information, education and services and call upon all countries to fully involve them in the design, implementation and evaluation of these programmes.”

United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Director (Latin America and the Caribbean), Marisela Padron, said the UNFPA “will remain at the side of Caribbean men as they engage in reproductive health programmes.” She also said the UNFPA was pleased that every Caribbean country has adopted the ICPD as “the framework for population and development work.” She however noted that one of the main constraints for Caribbean nations was limited finances and the Declaration calls “upon the international community to foster a supportive economic environment by promoting an equitable, secure, non-discriminatory international trading system, particularly for the Caribbean.” Padron added that while the United States has temporarily withdrawn its backing from the UNFPA, the American Government had signalled its intention to return. Planning and Development Ministry representative Desmond Hunte said the only way countries could achieve the Millenium Development Goals is to remain “faithful to ICPD” which charts “a new way of looking at population development.” He said three major concerns raised at the two-day meeting were the impact of HIV/AIDS on the Caribbean, international migration and loss of health personnel.