Population challenges and development goals

The present report has two objectives. First, it presents a succinct overview of demographic trends worldwide, for major areas and selected countries. It covers population size and growth, urbanization and city growth, population aging, fertility and contraception, mortality and international migration. In addition to covering world demographic trends, this report includes a section on population policies, in which the concerns and responses of Governments with respect to major trends are summarized. Second, the report considers the contribution of the implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), in all its aspects, to the achievement of the internationally agreed development goals, including those contained in the United Nations Millennium Declaration. The report is therefore very timely, coming soon after the tenth anniversary of the adoption of the ICPD Programme of Action at Cairo, Egypt, in 1994, and at the fifth anniversary of the adoption of the United Nations Millennium Declaration by 147 Heads of State and Government at the United Nations in 2000.