Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour)

I thank Deputies Mitchell and Anne Ferris for raising this matter. It is accepted internationally, and the Government agrees, that the provision of reproductive health services to women is essential in tackling the continuing high rates of maternal mortality in the developing world. These include pre-natal and postnatal care, emergency obstetric services and access to family planning services. The position Ireland takes in international policy discussions on sexual and reproductive health is based on a firm commitment to the programme of action agreed at the international conference on population and development, ICPD, in Cairo 1994. The ICPD set out a number of clear principles of reproductive health. These include the importance of gender equality and the empowerment of women in reducing poverty and vulnerability, the right of all women to the information and means to make autonomous decisions about their fertility, and the link between women's control over their fertility and the wider empowerment of women in the economic, social and political life.

The agreement on the ICPD programme of action was the first time the international community committed to the goal of universal access to reproductive health care by 2015, a target later integrated into the millennium development goals, MDG. The fifth MDG is to improve maternal health. Ireland is fully committed to helping to achieve the goal. Through our aid programme, we provide funding for programmes that aim to improve maternal health, reduce maternal mortality and provide family planning and reproductive health services to women in the developing world. Unfortunately, less progress has been made on the targets set out under the fifth MDG than on any other development targets. For instance, there is still a massive unmet need for family planning globally, especially in the poorest countries and communities. We need broad international consensus on sexual and reproductive health issues if serious progress is to be made on meeting these targets.

Ireland's main partners for our support of reproductive health and maternal health programmes include the United Nations Population Fund, UNFPA, and Irish and international NGOs. Ireland has provided almost €30 million in funding to UNFPA since 2005. We also support reproductive and maternal health programmes as integral elements in our assistance in many of Irish Aid's priority countries, including Ethiopia and Mozambique.

One of Ireland's development priorities for our Presidency of the Council of the EU in 2013 will be agreeing a common EU position for UN General Assembly high level meeting in September 2013 on the millennium development goals and developing a position on the framework for international development after 2015, the target date for the MDGs. Ireland's consistent position has been to draw particular attention to the targets and the countries where least progress has been made, notably in sub-Saharan Africa. We will continue to emphasise the need for a renewed commitment to reducing maternal mortality and to achieving universal access to reproductive health care.

The European Commission has started the process for preparing a Commission communication on the MDG review and post-2015 development framework and will formally launch a public consultation in the next few weeks. The consultation will last some 12 weeks. We expect the Commission communication will be available in early 2013. Ireland will work closely with the Commission throughout the process and we look forward to having Council conclusions adopted by the Foreign Affairs Council on this important issue during Ireland's Presidency.

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