Thirty years of advances in sexual and reproductive health have left marginalized women behind
Vienna (OTS) – Published with the World Population Report UNFPA an annual overview of the current status of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) of people worldwide. The presentation of the report in Austria is organized by the Austrian Society for Family Planning (ÖGF) organized. With speakers from UNFPA and the Austrian Parliamentary group for Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights, #parlaandsex, the report was presented at a press conference in Parliament on April 18th.
Since the United Nations recognized SRHR as human rights in 1994, enormous progress has been made. The World Population Report celebrates these positive developments over the last 30 years. At the same time, it shows that millions of people are still denied their right to sexual and reproductive health care. This particularly affects marginalized women and girls. “We need to do more to achieve better health care for all”
emphasizes Willibald Zeck, Chief of the Sexual and Reproductive Health Branch of UNFPA.
A quarter of all women cannot refuse sex with their partner or husband and around 1 in 10 women have no say in whether contraception is used. ““Women must have the undeniable right to decide about their own bodies and their own future.”
demands Henrike Brandstötter, NEOS spokesperson for women, equal treatment and development cooperation.
The World Population Report highlights how racism, sexism and other forms of discrimination shape our health systems and block progress in sexual and reproductive health. Eva-Maria Holzleitner, SPÖ deputy club chairman and area spokesperson for women, emphasizes: “Where women are subjected to forms of oppression, they do not have full and independent decisions about their reproductive health.”
The report’s data makes it clear that over the past 30 years, the main beneficiaries of progress have been those women and girls who already had good access to sexual and reproductive health care. Women and girls with disabilities, refugee women, ethnic minorities, the LGBTQIA+ community or people with HIV were left behind. Faika El-Nagashi, spokesperson for integration and diversity policy for the Green Party, emphasizes: “Globally, multiple crises and exacerbated inequalities are having massive consequences for sexual and reproductive health.”
El-Nagashi emphasizes the relevance of scientifically based, age-appropriate, culturally sensitive knowledge as a prerequisite for human rights-oriented measures for sexual and reproductive health.
Elisabeth Pfurtscheller, ÖVP area spokeswoman for women, clarifies in a written quote: “The goal of leaving no one behind can only be achieved if we empower those who are furthest behind. This means we must ensure their voices are heard and data and analysis respond to their experiences.”
It requires working with governments and decision-makers to overhaul the structures and systems that prevent millions of people from accessing their rights. Holzleitner says: “It is the task of politicians to continue to campaign vehemently for the physical self-determination of all women, because this is both a human right and a women’s right.”
You can find the German short version of the world population report here. Further information and printed copies can be obtained from the Austrian Society for Family Planning (ÖGF), office@oegf.at, 01 478 52 42
You can find ÖGF demands on the Austrian government to improve SRGR worldwide here.
Questions & Contact:
international@oegf.at, 01 478 52 42