Bangladeshi doctor and Haitian organisation win Population Award

13 April 2006

UNITED NATIONS, New York, 13 April - A veteran family planning doctor and programme manager, Dr. Halida Hanum Akhter, of Bangladesh, and Haiti's Foundation for Reproductive Health and Family Education (FOSREF) have won this year's United Nations Population Award. The Award goes each year to individuals and institutions for their outstanding work in population and in improving the health and welfare of individuals.

The Population Award Committee, chaired by Ambassador Judith Bahemuka of Kenya, chose the winners from 27 nominees, including top-level policy makers, researchers and health workers from around the world. The Committee consists of 10 United Nations Member States, with UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, serving as its secretariat. Each winner will receive a diploma, a gold medal and an equal share of a monetary prize. The awards will be presented on Wednesday, 7 June, at the United Nations, New York.

Dr. Akhter is the Director-General of the Family Planning Association of Bangladesh, which was established in 1953, making it one of the world's oldest Planned Parenthood affiliates, according to papers filed with the Award Committee. She also chairs the Board of Directors of the Program for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH), based in Seattle. During her 30-year career, Dr. Akhter researched and managed reproductive health programmes and technologies. In 1986, she founded the Bangladesh Institute of Research for Promotion of Essential and Reproductive Health and Technologies. At this institute, the laureate took part in key research in contraceptive effectiveness, reproductive health needs and services, and in assessments of maternal deaths in Bangladesh.

The other winner, FOSREF (Fondation pour la Sante Reproductive e l'Education Familiale), is a private, non-profit organization devoted to reproductive health and the promotion of family life in Haiti, according to papers submitted to the Award Committee. Formed in 1988, it provides reproductive health care that covers more than 1.2 million people through a network of 26 centres. FOSREF has provided basic training on reproductive health to 500 teachers and 6,500 young workers, and created a network of 30,000 young volunteers who disseminate information on reproductive health, including HIV/AIDS. As a result of these efforts, about 30,000 people in Haiti now use contraceptives, and there is evidence of significant reductions in unintended pregnancies and HIV/AIDS infections, according to papers sent to the Award Committee.

The Economic and Social Council elects members of the Award Committee for three-year terms. They are Algeria, Bangladesh, Belarus, Cameroon, Guyana, Haiti, Iran, Kenya, Netherlands and Peru. Secretary-General Kofi Annan and UNFPA Executive Director Thoraya Ahmed Obaid serve as ex-officio members.

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UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, is an international development agency that promotes the right of every woman, man and child to enjoy a life of health and equal opportunity. UNFPA supports countries in using population data for policies and programmes to reduce poverty and to ensure that every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is safe, every young person is free of HIV/AIDS, and every girl and woman is treated with dignity and respect.