The annual UNFPA WCA Regional Leadership Meeting kicked off on March 18th 2024 in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire on the theme: Accelerating progress on the 2022-2025 Strategic Plan in West and Central Africa where participants will reflect on how to accelerate the implementation of UNFPA programmes in the region.

Current trends show that merely 15% of the Sustainable Development Goals are progressing as anticipated to be achieved by 2030. This indicates a substantial gap between current efforts and the envisioned targets. Urgent action is required to maintain progress.  UNFPA's mandate, particularly the three transformative outcomes of the 1994 ICPD action plan, are integral to national development priorities outlined in the National Development Plan (PND 2021-2025).

In her opening address, Mrs. Nialé Kaba, Côte d’Ivoire Minister of Economy, Planning and Development, who chaired the opening session, declared: "Our National Development Plan is supported by its strategic, high-impact accelerator, the Government Social Program (PSGouv1 et 2), aimed at the most vulnerable populations, including women, young people and communities in rural areas so that no one is left behind.”

The Regional Leadership Meeting is one of a series of UNFPA strategy meetings held periodically in one of the region's countries, serving as a platform for sharing ideas, strategies, and collaborative efforts to achieve the ICPD agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals.

Dr. Sennen Hounton, Director of UNFPA's Regional Office for West and Central Africa, emphasized the need for agility and increased impact of the programme to accelerate the progress of the Strategic Plan.

"In the face of the world's changing realities, we must adapt and innovate to ensure that reproductive health rights and choices are at the heart of the development agenda,” he said.

During her welcoming remarks, Mrs. Cécile Compaoré Zoungrana, UNFPA Resident Representative in Côte d’Ivoire, host of the event, urged the participants to take bold action to accelerate ICPD agenda.

"Thirty years after the adoption of the ICPD Plan of Action and five years from the deadline of the SDGs, it is timelier than ever to engage in dialogue on the theme of accelerating progress, as it invites us to greater agility, innovation and synergy of action to close the gaps in achieving the 3 transformative outcomes of UNFPA's strategic plan,” she said.

This leadership meeting offers a platform to deliberate on strategic priorities and opportunities aimed at achieving the organization's objectives, including the reduction of maternal mortality, enhancing access to and utilization of family planning services, and diminishing gender disparities.