854 



RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE U.N. POPULATION MEASURES 



The Pearson Report has urged a stronger role for international 

 organizations "to slow the growth of population." Special attention was 

 directed at "the training of population and family planning special- 

 ists." Other important contributions proposed were in the develop- 

 ment of "social policies which reduce the dependence on the family as 

 the sole source of security" in order to lessen the motivation for large 

 families in the LDCs, and a worldwide mobilization of scientific re- 

 search to develop a "genuinely satisfactory method for fertility 

 control." 1" 



In a separate section of the Report devoted to "Population Policy," 

 five recommendations were offered for future action. These wer6 : 



That bilateral and international agencies press in aid negotia- 

 tions for adequate analysis of popmation problems and of the 

 bearing of these problems on development programs ; 



That developing countries identify their population problem, 

 if they have not already done so, recognize the relevance of popu- 

 lation growth to their social and economic planning, and adopt 

 appropriate programs ; 



That developed countries initiate or strengthen their own facil- 

 ities for population studies ; 



That international organizations extend their training of popu- 

 lation and family-planning specialists in all relevant categories; 

 and 



We * * * endorse the proposal to appoint a Commissioner for 

 Population in the United Nations. 



In support of the final recommendation, the Report observed : "As 

 things now stand, there are both gaps and overlaps in the handling 

 of population problems by UN agencies. Effective organization of as- 

 sistance for population programs is needlessly delayed." The Report 

 called attention to the fact that in many LDCs the incentive in the 

 individual family toward having many children had economic validity 

 as a form of increased productivity and social security. "In the long 

 run, economic growth and modernization tend to make a large family 

 a heavy economic burden rather than a source of gain and security, 

 and thus to discourage fertility and slow population growth, but this 

 process takes a long time if it is not deliberately accelerated." 

 Then the Report proposed a sixth recommendation : 



That the World Bank, in consultation with the WHO, launch 

 immediately a wide-ranging international program for the direc- 

 tion, coordination, and financing of researcn in the field of human 

 reproduction and fertility control. 



144 



la ••Partners In Development," op. clt., page 20. 

 i"Ibld., pages 195-199. 



