SPAIN'S STATEMENT AT ICPD25

I would like to begin by thanking the governments of Denmark and Kenya for organizing the new International Conference on Population and Development and by expressing our support for the joint statement made by South Africa on behalf of a number of countries, including Spain.

The International Conference on Population and Development that took place in Cairo 25 years ago was a landmark event with significant outcomes: setting out that people’s rights are key to development; declaring sexual and reproductive health as being critical; and expressing the need to empower women and girls in order to ensure the well-being of individuals, families, nations and the world as a whole. Spain adopted the Cairo Programme of Action and has put it into practice, both within the country and in its foreign policy.

With this experience and commitment, we reiterate our firm and unequivocal support for gender equality and sexual and reproductive rights, as well as the vital role they play in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the fulfilment of the Sustainable Development Goals. We therefore call on the international community to ensure that nobody is left behind in the pursuit of these rights and to keep the population and development agenda at the centre of the global agenda.

Spain will continue to defend those countries and organizations fighting any setbacks in the rights of women and girls, advocating for the full exercise of rights as an essential requirement for sustainable development and the construction of just and peaceful societies. We will continue to defend lifelong sexual and reproductive rights and fight all forms of violence against women in both development and humanitarian contexts.