POPULATION

Hong Kong: Government releases Population Policy Progress Report 2012 The Government released the report of the Steering Committee on Population Policy Progress 2012, which sets out the recommendations of the Steering Committee on Population Policy (SCPP) for addressing the short- and long-term demographic challenges that Hong Kong is facing. The Progress Report puts forth 10 major recommendations in important areas, including Mainland women giving birth in Hong Kong, long-term manpower supply and supporting elderly people. www.7thspace.com Opposition to Same-Sex Marriage Falling Like Dominoes in Australia When dominoes are lined up just right, the first one to tip onto its neighbor starts a chain reaction. That is what is happening in Australia, as state and territory legislators vote their support of marriage equality for the country’s same-sex couples. Last September, Tasmania’s Parliament passed a motion in support of marriage equality in Australia. Then in November, the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly approved a motion calling on the federal government to allow same-sex marriages. Now Coalition MPs in the New South Wales Upper House of the Parliament have in support of marriage equality. All three votes call on the federal government to reform the Marriage Act so that same-sex couples can wed. www.care2.com India calls first national meeting to help fight child marriage Alarmed at the practice of child marriages in India, the Ministry of Women and Child Development is planning to hold the first national consultation to curb the menace. The ministry has already formed a core group of officers who will be looking at all aspects of the consultation. The practice of child marriage is happening despite a law banning child marriage, dating as far back as 1929, with subsequent amendments in 1949 and 1978. With the passage of a comprehensive Prohibition of Child Marriage Act in 2006, the National Family Health Survey 2005-06 revealed that 44.5 per cent of women between the ages of 20-24 years had been married before they turned 18. www.gulfnews.com Papua New Guinea: Family Planning and Subsistence Agriculture Key to Food Security Papua New Guinea’s high fertility rate is exerting pressure on land and food production in a country where 80 percent of the population lives in rural communities. But the National Agricultural Research Institute argues that traditions of subsistence agriculture provide a firm foundation to build food security for a growing population. According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation, the nation’s strong agricultural sector could easily ensure food security, with agricultural exports of 882 million dollars exceeding imports of 425 million dollars. The fertility rate in Papua New Guinea is 4.6 children per woman, according to UNFPA, compared to the average fertility rate in developed countries of 1.7 births per woman. The National Research Institute predicts the current population could rise to seven million by 2014 and 8.5 million by 2024. Attaining food security will entail addressing both population growth and agricultural productivity. www.ipsnews.net HEALTH Bangladesh increases allocation for health The Finance Minister has proposed Tk 93.55 ($1.12 billion) billion for the health and family welfare sector for 2012-13 fiscal which is Tk 0.10 billion more than the current financial year. Citing government's steps in the health and family welfare sector, he said, the government had earned 'enviable success' among the SAARC countries in terms of reduction of maternal mortality and infant mortality rate as well as increased life expectancy. The Finance Minister quoting Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey 2011 said, under-5 mortality rate has been reduced to 53 from 65 per 1000 over the past four years. He said the government was working on updating population policy. www.bdnews.24.com