But as nations gather at the United Nations this week to discuss the future of our population growth, two major obstacles are taking center stage: a lack of funding and a growing gap between those who have access to new technology and those who do not.<\/p>\n
For almost two decades, Nigeria<\/strong> The country is grappling with large-scale displacement of people in its restive north-east, with nearly 20 lakh people displaced from their homes.<\/p>\n Responding to this humanitarian crisis is a huge undertaking, compounded by climate shocks, disease outbreaks and shrinking aid budgets.<\/p>\n Mafa, a camp for internally displaced people in Borno state, north-east Nigeria (File, 2018)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Historically, a lack of reliable information about displaced people has hindered efforts to help them, but in recent years, the government has used displacement tracking matrix<\/a>A tool developed by the United Nations Migration Agency (IOM<\/a>), which has allowed them to accurately assess the number of internally displaced persons, their location and their specific needs.<\/p>\n Today, the tool supports decision makers and humanitarian responders in approximately 91 countries around the world, underscoring the growing importance of technology in the field of population research.<\/p>\n The role of technology will be at the center of discussion at the latest session of the Commission on Population and Development to be held at the United Nations Headquarters from 13 to 17 April this week.<\/p>\n While digital tools like metrics are expanding access to information, they are also creating new challenges,<\/strong> That includes the growing digital divide, data-privacy risks, misinformation and technology-facilitated violence. <\/p>\n These important issues will also be discussed during the session.<\/p>\n Prosthetics were created using AI tools by Bionics Technologies, a Pakistani company (File) <\/p>\n<\/div>\n The talks are guided by three UN reports Secretary General Antonio Guterres<\/a>. <\/strong>First<\/strong><\/a> Highlights how digital tools are changing access<\/strong> For health care, education, jobs, and information: Medical technologies are increasing life expectancy, while changes in work and communications are affecting where people live, when they have children, and how families are formed.<\/p>\n The Secretary-General also warned that many people, especially in low-income countries, rural areas and marginalized communities, still lack access to the Internet, digital services and modern health technologies. <\/p>\n These gaps \u2013 often called the digital divide \u2013 risk deepening inequality between and within countries. Women, older people, and people with disabilities are often most affected.<\/p>\n Second <\/strong>report<\/strong><\/a> Focuses on aging societies<\/strong> and increasing demand for elder care services, geriatric specialists and the use of assistive technologies. To prepare, countries must strengthen their internet infrastructure, expand the use of digital tools, and invest in science and technology training.<\/p>\n Many countries have launched innovative digital health care initiatives to improve knowledge about migration and humanitarian needs, including during crises such as pandemics and natural disasters. <\/p>\n Examples include bangladesh<\/strong>\u2019s mHealth project, which uses SMS to connect mothers to health advice, India<\/strong>\u2019s eSanjeevani platform, which has provided over 150 million telemedicine sessions, and Nepal<\/strong>‘S Oh Sita<\/a>Developed by the United Nations Agency for Sexual and Reproductive Rights (UNFPA<\/a>), which rapidly analyzes national datasets to produce detailed reports and briefs.<\/p>\n Funding for international development has declined sharply since 2023, impacting funding for population-related programmes, particularly in low- and middle-income countries.<\/p>\n third report<\/a> This decline, including in aid for technology and research, reflects a worrying trend that is widening global inequalities in knowledge, skills and innovation capacity. <\/p>\n The Secretary-General warns that current funding levels are not sufficient to meet or achieve the Commission’s goals 2030 agenda<\/a> for sustainable development, and calls for stronger and more predictable financing focused on sexual and reproductive health, population data, and research and technology \u2013 especially in the poorest and most vulnerable countries.<\/p>\ntracking metrics<\/h2>\n
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<\/p>\n<\/picture>\n<\/div>\nTechnology is changing the way people live and age<\/h2>\n
funding freefall<\/h2>\n