Statement the UN Population and Development Commission

(Check against delivery)

Chair, excellencies, distinguished delegates,

‘Morality becomes hypocrisy if it means accepting mothers’ suffering or dying in connection with unwanted pregnancies and illegal abortions, and unwanted children living in misery.’ 

These were the honest words of Former Prime Minister of Norway, Gro Harlem Brundtland, when she addressed the first CPD in Cairo over 30 years ago.

And yet, today this is exactly what is taking place.

Chair,

Women’s rights and equality are being called into question. 

Reproductive health and well-being are being sacrificed.

LGBT-people’s human rights are being questioned.

The progress made since the historic conferences in Cairo and Beijing is under attack. This should alarm us all.

Sexual and reproductive health and rights are not charity; they are justice.

These matters are not marginal. They are essential for us all to develop and thrive.

We all have a huge stake in them.  

Chair, 

In 2015, when we adopted the SDGs, we all agreed that gender equality was good for all nations.

Now it is being questioned. 

Not on the basis of new knowledge and research. 

But because of political forces rejecting basic gender equality and human rights for all. 

We need to re-commit to multilateralism, to the Charter of the United Nations, and to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. 

It is time to roll up our sleeves -again. 

Chair, 

Norway believes technology must be a tool for rights, not against them.

I am proud that Norway has taken the lead developing the world’s largest,  health management  system , recording key indicators to address women’s health in more than 100 countries.

Chair, 

We need to use this year’s commission to ensure we move from awareness to commitment.

History rarely judges us by what we endorsed in principle—but by what we defended in practice.

It is our responsibility to ensure that young people have a real right to participate in decisions that affect them, voice their opinions, and take on leadership roles. 

When we succeed, we foster more inclusive, sustainable and just societies. 

I will now pass the microphone to Norway’s Youth Delegate, Uswa Malik. 

Thank you for your attention. 

Youth Delegate Uswa Malik 13th April 2026:

Thank you, Minister.

Chair, Excellencies,

Digital health is expanding access to care, but not for everyone, and not on equal terms.

It is reshaping how health systems function, how information is accessed, and how care is delivered

But they do not enter neutral systems. They are layered onto existing inequalities that determine who has a device, who controls it, and who can use it without risk.

These conditions are unevenly distributed along lines we already recognize: gender, income, geography, and age.

When digital systems become an entry point to care, these disparities translate directly into unequal health outcomes.

At the same time, health systems are becoming increasingly data-driven.

Sensitive information is collected, stored, and processed across platforms operating beyond consistent safeguards or clear accountability.

For those seeking stigmatized or criminalized services, this alters the conditions under which care is sought, and whether it is sought at all.

This is incompatible with the right to health.

The right to health includes the ability to seek care without fear, without surveillance, without consequences beyond the clinic.

A rights-based approach to digital health requires more than availability of technology. Access must be safe. It must be private. And design must reflect the realities of those expected to use them.

These principles are grounded in the Charter of the United Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and must extend fully into digital systems

Technology holds extraordinary promise. However, without safeguards, it deepens inequality, reinforces discrimination, and undermines human rights. Without trust, there is no access.