Draft first regional report on the implementation of the Montevideo Consensus on Population and Development

<strong>Draft</strong> <strong>first</strong> <strong>regional</strong> <strong>report</strong> on the implementation of the Montevideo Consensus on Population and Development
Chapter III
Table III.A1.1 (concluded)
Guyana
Honduras
Jamaica
Mexico
Panama
Paraguay
Peru
Suriname
Uruguay
Venezuela (Bolivarian
Republic of)
There is no planning unit or agency to continuously address the issues of population dynamics and their integration into
national planning and sectoral policies. There is a mechanism under the Ministry of Social Protection (National Steering
Committee on the implementation of the Montevideo Consensus) responsible for broad participation, including non-governmental
organizations (NGOs), as part of the public institution responsible for coordinating population and development issues.
The public institution that handles population and development issues is the Secretariat for Human Rights, Justice, Governance
and Decentralization, specifically the Department of Governance and Decentralization in its capacity as Executive Secretariat
of the National Population Council (CONAPO). CONAPO is made up of 17 representatives of the State and 18 of civil society, and is
thus a widely participatory mechanism for population issues.
There is a permanent institutional structure devoted to population and development issues. The Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ)
is the national focal point for population and development issues. In 1983, Jamaica established a multisectoral Population Policy
Coordinating Committee to monitor the implementation of its National Population Policy. In 2007 this mechanism was renamed
the Population Thematic Working Group (PopTWG) of Vision 2030 Jamaica. The membership of the PopTWG is drawn from a
cross-section of stakeholders with technical interest in and knowledge of population issues including relevant government ministries,
departments and agencies, private sector bodies, academia, civil society, key individuals and international development partners.
The National Population Council (CONAPO) comprises 17 departments and agencies of the federal public administration plus
the 32 states. Civil society participates in the specific thematic arrangements relating to the chapters.
The Technical Secretariat of the Social Cabinet (STGS) coordinated the preparation of the national <strong>report</strong>. To draft the <strong>report</strong>,
workshops were held with the support of UNFPA and participated in by the institutions forming part of the Population Technical
Committee (COTEPO), other public institutions, civil society organizations and United Nations agencies. COTEPO, which advises
the Social Cabinet on population and development issues, has been operating since 1987.
Preparation of the national <strong>report</strong> was coordinated by the Technical Secretariat for the Planning of Economic and Social
Development, which <strong>report</strong>s to the Office of the President of the Republic, through discussions between State institutions, civil
society organizations and private sector firms.
The Multisectoral Commission for follow-up and evaluation of the implementation of the Montevideo Consensus is a standing
body. It is chaired by the Ministry of Women and Vulnerable Populations and its members are another 17 national public
sector bodies. The Technical Secretariat of the Commission comes under the Department of Population, Development and
Volunteering of the Ministry for Women and Vulnerable Populations. Representatives of civil society were interviewed to prepare
the national <strong>report</strong>, in particular the Sexual and Reproductive Rights Oversight Committee.
The Ministry of Home Affairs acts as the national coordination mechanism for the Regional Conference on Population and
Development and is responsible, inter alia, for the civil status and population accounts in all Suriname. The Centraal Bureau voor
Burgerzaken (CBB) is responsible for carrying out this task, which includes the sustainable delivery of reliable and complete civil
registration, integration and integration policies and registration of foreigners. The ministry is also responsible for the optimal
participation of women in the development process in Suriname and ensures a balanced emancipatory women’s policy.
The preparation of Suriname’s national <strong>report</strong> for the Montevideo Consensus was led by the Ministry of Home Affairs. In gathering
data, both government <strong>report</strong>s and <strong>report</strong>s from civil society and non-governmental organizations were consulted. Various
ministries and non-governmental organizations provided information depending on their tasks. In finalizing the <strong>report</strong>, validation
meetings were held in which both government and non-governmental organizations participated.
The Sectoral Commission on Population and Development (CSP) was created by the Office of Planning and the Budget.
For operating purposes, it has two components: a plenary, with representatives from the executive branch, parliament, academia,
international cooperation agencies and civil society organizations, and an executive committee, made up of representatives
of government agencies. The CSP advises the executive branch on the creation of a medium- and long-term national vision for
demography and population and a strategy to attain this, and it is responsible for following up the Montevideo Consensus and
acting as a liaison with the Regional Conference on Population and Development. Its composition at the government level is
interinstitutional, and it is participated in by parliamentary population committees, civil society and academia, with technical
advice from UNFPA.
A number of progressive actions have been undertaken with a view to creating national coordinating mechanisms for the
operationalization of the Montevideo Consensus. A technical committee for initial coordination has been established and
is participated in by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, UNFPA and the National Institute of Statistics. In addition, a participatory
working methodology has been developed, and public sector bodies, a citizens’ organization and an international cooperation
agency have participated on this basis.
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