This archive report was first published on 12 November 2019.
As the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD+25) gets underway in Nairobi, faith leaders are being called upon to reaffirm their commitment to the shared goals of the ICPD, which include ending unmet need of child spacing, preventable maternal deaths, sexual and gender-based violence, and forced marriages.
The Nairobi summit, which began on November 12, 2019, is a high-level meeting that aims to breathe new life into an agreement reached 25 years ago at the inaugural ICPD in Cairo.
At the Cairo consensus, 179 governments, guided by many faith leaders from around the world, reached an agreement that has been at risk of being erased a quarter of a century later.
However, Rev Dr Mwaniki, an Anglican priest and director of the Department for Gender, Women and Youth at the All Africa Conference of Churches, argues that the aims of the ICPD are rooted in the sacred value and dignity of every human life.
From a biblical perspective, human dignity flows from our creation in God’s image, and sexual and reproductive health, rights, and information are part and parcel of religious teachings.
Rev Dr Mwaniki notes that what is scandalous is denying consenting adult couples the means to safely and responsibly plan and strategise, and hence enter, a healthy informed parenthood.
He also argues that there is no sound religious basis for denying an expectant mother healthcare, or for denying young people information about their own bodies.
Rev Dr Mwaniki and Dr Sheikh Omari, national chairman of the Alwahda Muslim Teachers Association and director of Inter-Religious Affairs at the Peace League Africa, invite members of all faiths to join them in calling on the world’s governments to walk the path towards a better future for all its citizens.
They call upon religious leaders to gird the flock that God has placed in their care, especially the already endangered lives of women and girls.
