Climate talk overlooks social issues

POPULATION

Family planning and reproductive health care will have a significant influence on global climate change, says the 2009 world population report released yesterday.

Demographic factors and migration from regions deserved more attention in national responses to climate change, according to the report from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

Slower population growth, for example, would help build social resilience to the impact of climate change and would contribute to a reduction of greenhouse-gas emissions in the future, said UNFPA regional director for Asia and the Pacific Nobuko Horibe.

However, Ms Horibe said it was an individual's right to consider the size of their family. "It is important that the women get access to necessary information so that they can have a free and informed choice," she said.

Bhassorn Limanonda, of Chulalongkorn University's College of Population Studies, said the rate of population growth and the uneven distribution of populations were two big concerns, especially in Asia.

The world's urban areas have 3.3 billion people, which would swell to 5 billion in 2030, said Prof Bhassorn, noting that urban lifestyles and urbanisation would have a serious impact on climate change and global warming.

"The rural to urban population movement is already a concern, but a much more serious issue for the climate change problem is the rural to rural migration which affects directly forest encroachment and over-utilisation of natural resources," she said.

Prof Bhassorn called for policy-makers to take into account the aspect of women in discussions on migration and climate change.

Governments should take action now on family planning, quality reproductive health care and more access and participation of women in natural resources management.

Population growth in the world has been declining from 1.7% in 2006 to the present 1.2%. However, it will take a long time for smaller global populations to be realised and make it convenient for policy-makers to take care of the population equation in all problems.

Jemilah Mahmood, founder of Mercy Malaysia, said women were more affected by disasters than men. They were less strong physically, but also deprived of necessary information.

"In some societies, they cannot climb trees or learn how to swim, but they are the ones who tend the farming, take care of households and children and risk their lives in disaster survival struggles," said Ms Mahmood, who also leads the UNFPA's humanitarian response team.