1994
Cairo, Egypt
The 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in Cairo is a landmark moment for feminist and reproductive rights advocates. One hundred seventy-nine governments adopt the ICPD Programme of Action, affirming that population policies require respect for human rights, reproductive rights, and gender equality.
Feminists celebrate the shift away from coercive population-control policies. The ICPD advanced a people-centred paradigm, yet feminist activists warned that without confronting structural inequalities and economic injustice, its promises would remain limited. The engagement of Southern activists in particular leads to strong language on development justice. The ICPD Programme of Action brings together sexual and reproductive health and rights with development justice in a heretofore unprecedented way.
