World Population Day 2020

The United Nations' (UN) World Population Day is annually observed on July 11 to reiterate the human right to plan for a family. It emboldens activities, events, and information to help make this right a reality throughout the world.

World Population Day aims to increase people’s attentiveness about several population issues such as the importance of family planning, gender equality, poverty, maternal health, and human rights.

World Population Day was instituted in 1989 as an outgrowth of the Day of Five Billion, marked on July 11, 1987. The UN authorized the event as a vehicle to build an awareness of population issues and the impact they have on development and the environment.

The Significance of this day is to make people aware of population issues due to the increase in the number of people.

According to UNFPA, this year's world population day 2020 theme will focus on “Putting the brakes on COVID-19: how to safeguard the health and rights of women and girls now.”

This year the UNFPA’s goal on World Population Day 2020 is to raise the consciousness of women’s and girls’ needs for sexual and reproductive health and vulnerabilities during the pandemic. The COVID-19 crisis has impacted individuals, cultures, and economies all over the world. However, not all are equally contrived. For instance, women who make up the major share of health care staff in the frontline are disproportionately exposed to coronavirus. Supply chains across the globe are being disrupted, affecting contraceptive supply, and also causing an increased risk of unintended pregnancy. Sexual and reproductive health services are being sidelined as countries are on lock-down and health systems are struggling to cope, and gender-based violence is on the rise.

So, the UNFPA is focusing more on women, girls, adolescents, and youth as they are highly impacted amid this pandemic and working rigorously to ensure their safety.