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Brazilian social scientist, Polish foundation win 2016 UN Population Award

Xinhua, April 28, 2016 Adjust font size:

A Brazilian social scientist and a Polish organization promoting improved quality of care for Polish mothers and newborns, have won the 2016 United Nations Population Award, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric announced here Wednesday.

According to documents submitted to the Population Award Committee, Brazilian scientist Carmen Barroso's contributions to population questions and their solutions had a great impact through her leadership of major organizations.

In Brazil, she was a pioneer in gender studies while working at the Chagas Foundation and teaching at the University of Sao Paulo. She published extensively in academic and popular media and served on many boards and international commissions.

After directing the Reproductive Health and Population Programme at the MacArthur Foundation, she became director of the International Planned Parenthood Federation Western Hemisphere Region, in New York.

Barroso was a member of the Commission on Reproductive Health of the Brazilian government, a pioneer effort for engaging multiple stakeholders in accountability for women's health policies. She is currently a member of the Independent Accountability Panel on the Global Strategy on Women, Children and Adolescents Health, which was formed by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in February 2016.

The Polish Childbirth in Dignity Foundation, a strong supporter of the rights of women and the newborn for almost two decades, has helped improve the treatment of women in hospitals in Poland, according to submissions to the Award Committee.

Operating through campaigns and other advocacy efforts, the foundation has empowered women to demand their patients' rights in relation to childbirth. It was awarded the Japanese Sasakawa Health Prize for a special contribution to improving the quality of perinatal care and raising women's awareness of their rights.

The Committee for the United Nations Population Award, which selects the awardees, is chaired by Paraguay, and includes Antigua and Barbuda, Bangladesh, Benin, Gambia, Ghana, Haiti, Iran, Israel and Poland.

Past laureates selected by the Committee included individuals and organizations, such as Bill and Melinda Gates, Allen Rosenfeld, the Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital and the Population Council. The award is scheduled to be presented at the United Nations on June 23.

Established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1981, the award recognizes outstanding achievement in the fields of population and health.

Each year, the Committee honors an individual and/or institution in recognition of outstanding contributions to population and reproductive health questions and to their solutions. The Award was first presented in 1983. It consists of a gold medal, a diploma and a monetary prize. Endit