February 2013's Edition of
POPULATION ONLINE
Brings you stories on...

• Werner Fornos, Former President of Population Institute, Passes Away
  In January the world lost a tireless advocate for family planning. Werner Fornos, who served as President of the Population Institute from 1982 to 2005, passed away on January 16 following a lengthy illness. He was 79 years of age. During his years of service at the Population Institute, Fornos was a powerful advocate for the United Nations Population Fund and U.S. international family planning assistance. An accomplished speaker and a recognized expert on population, he gave talks in more than 50 countries about the challenges posed by rapid population growth. A memorial service was held February 2, 2013, in Bayse, Virginia. In his honor, the Population Institute will be creating an annual Werner H. Fornos Fellowship.
• Global Media Awards Presented in Washington DC
  The Population Institute held our 33rd Annual Global Media Awards in Washington DC in January. We were honored to have two of our winners speak at the awards ceremony, Richard Ottaway, the British MP who won for his essay Sex, Ideology and Religion: 10 myths about world population growth, and Ken Weiss, the Los Angeles Times reporter who won for his series Beyond 7 Billion.
• Looming Sequester Likely to Impact Funding for International Family Planning
  Unless Congress acts to head them off, automatic budget cuts will go into effect on March 1 as a result of sequestration. The much-debated sequester would cut $85.3 billion from this year's budget and $1.2 trillion from the budget over the next 10 years. These cuts would have a major impact on all discretionary spending. According to Secretary of State Kerry the proposed cuts would eliminate $400 million from USAID's global health funding. Included in this cut would be an estimated $30 million reduction in international family planning assistance.
• Senator Kerry named Secretary of State
  The Population Institute congratulates Senator John Kerry on his confirmation as the new Secretary of State. Secretary Kerry has shown strong leadership on international affairs during his time in the Senate, including on international women's issues. We are pleased that Secretary Kerry in his confirmation hearings affirmed that he would make women and girls a priority at the State Department. Kerry said, "In the Senate I've made promoting the rights of women and girls a priority, not just because it's the right thing to do, but because societies that empower the talents of their entire populations are more stable and more prosperous."
• The Philippines Approves Historic Reproductive Health Act
  It took 14 years, but family planning advocates scored a major victory in the Philippines with the passage of the Responsible Parenthood Act, a new law providing free access to contraception and family planning services. Despite fierce opposition from the Catholic Church and intense foot-dragging in the legislature, reproductive rights supporters passed the reproductive health bill in both Houses and sent it to the desk of President Benigno Aquino, who signed it on December 29. The new law, however, is expected to face several court challenges. Supporters fear that it could be overturned by the Supreme Court. The need for the new legislation, however, is evident. Surveys in the Philippines indicate that four out of ten women in the Philippines who want to avoid a pregnancy are not using a modern method of contraception, and while condoms are available, they are often very expensive. Contraceptives, as a practical matter, are not available in most public health clinics.
• Mali on Verge of Becoming a Failing State
  Following a government coup and a terrorist-led insurrection in the North, the central African nation of Mali is on the verge of becoming a failed state. Mali, which suffers from chronic hunger and malnutrition, has endured three droughts in the past ten years. A good rainy season might ease its suffering, but water scarcity in Mali is a chronic problem, as are malaria, childhood diseases, maternal mortality, and severe poverty. In 2011 Mali was ranked 186 out of 187 countries by UNDP's Human Development Index. Yet its population is one of the fastest-growing in the world. Unless fertility rates fall faster than expected, or death rates start to rise, Mali could tripe its population in the next 40 years. The Population Reference Bureau projects that its population, currently 16 million, will rise to 45 million by 2050.