Source: The Guardian
This week, ministers and women's rights activists convened in New York for the annual Commission on Population and Development, which assesses progress against agreements made at a conference in Cairo in 1994.

We asked members of Resurj, a global alliance of young feminists, what their governments are doing to support young women and the changes they would like to see.

Samah Krichah, Le Labo' Démocratique, Tunisia

As a young Arab woman living in a very unstable region of the world, my interest in women's rights, as well as sexual and reproductive health and rights, have an added dimension: the impact on those rights of conflicts and [extremely] conservative societies. For a long time, women in my region were held back at almost all levels and were [and still are] seen only as victims. This is to some extent a true reflection of the situation, since women are constantly victims of different types of violence and sexual abuse in Tunisia, from discriminatory national policies to harassment, [and] from rape to – now, more recently – being sold as slaves by Isis.

However, development needs equality: women being regarded the same way as men and enjoying the same rights. The goal of this year's Commission on Population and Development is to integrate population issues into sustainable development. From my point of view, nothing can be done without women enjoying their rights and liberty, possessing their bodies and being fully acknowledged as actors of development and part of decision-making process at all levels, especially in the context of peacebuilding and peacemaking.

Nzira Deus, Movfemme, Mozambique

Often, sexual and reproductive programmes in Mozambique ignore the social and cultural factors that prevent young women and girls from making healthy decisions, thus making them vulnerable to undesired pregnancy, sexual violence and debilitating health conditions such as obstetric fistulas.

In rural areas, cultural practices such as initiation rites and early marriage have a negative impact on the sexual and reproductive health of girls and young women. Initiation rites teach girls to behave as adult women, making them abandon school and get married early. Unfortunately, in rural areas girls do not have access to information about their rights and bodies, safe spaces to talk freely, or friendly services. Rural hospitals lack trained people to provide information, and some of them are not responsive to the needs and rights of girls. There is also a lack of contraceptives other than male condoms, but in my country it is difficult for a young woman to negotiate the use of a condom with a male. As a result, girls and young women are more likely to become pregnant and risk their lives obtaining an unsafe abortion.

The government needs to focus more attention on programmes that inform young women and girls about their sexual and reproductive rights. Policies must not just stay on paper, but must be implemented, being mindful that rural areas have different needs from urban centres. The government needs to adopt creative mechanisms to educate and spread information in rural areas, taking into account the context as well as the diversity of languages and cultures.

It is important to develop the leadership of young women from rural areas, and bring them to the policy-making table so their voices can be heard and they can propose solutions for their problems. We need to eliminate the stigma of youth sexuality and challenge negative practices and culture, because no culture should ever trump human rights.

Natasha Sajjad, Rutgers WPF Pakistan, Pakistan

In Pakistan, adolescents are the least considered sector of the population. They're often forgotten from development discourses and excluded from policy dialogue.

Puberty is never discussed, and the most that is said is, "You're growing up." With the onset of menstruation, all a girl is told is: "Be extremely careful or your clothes will get stained and that will be shameful ... And oh! Keep it a secret!"

So the confusion and turmoil that they are going though, the physical and emotional changes they are experiencing, are completely ignored. In fact, when asked, adults often say, "No one told us. They too will figure it out." And adolescents do figure it out, through friends, browsing the internet or by going to back-alley quacks. They also figure it out by being sexually abused, becoming child brides, having unintended pregnancies, unsafe abortions and sexually transmitted infections.

In Pakistan, sexual and reproductive rights are not a reality. For adolescents, especially for adolescent girls, this is a distant dream. Providing adolescents with contextualised information and education on sexuality doesn't happen. Services related to their sexual and reproductive health are not readily available either. Though adolescents are the flag-bearers of sustainable development, no one realises that holistic development isn't possible without the basic human right of sexual and reproductive health.

We have a long path to travel. It is important that existing policies are implemented appropriately and, even more importantly, implemented with a human face. There is a need for a push from the international community in getting sexual and reproductive rights acknowledged and acted upon.

When the international community came together in Cairo in 1994 and placed the individual at the centre of population issues, talking about the reproductive rights of individuals, this enabled Pakistan to introduce programmes on reproductive health. The post-2015 development framework needs to have a strong focus on sexual and reproductive health and rights for adolescents, especially girls, to give Pakistan the much-needed push to address their needs.

Mariana Mancilla, Balance, Mexico

The decisions that women make about our sexual and reproductive health can impact the entire span of our lives and determine whether we feel safe, free and happy. Yet the majority of young women in Latin America are not able to make these decisions freely.

In Mexico City, for example, abortion has been legalised up to 12 weeks, but this helps only those women who live in the city, or have the financial means to travel there. Reproductive justice remains elusive for millions of other women. Many of the governments in my region continue to side with fundamentalist forces, trading away women's rights, especially our sexual and reproductive rights.

We need a clear – and complete – separation between the church and state. We need our governments to create international agreements and public policies based on human rights, in particular the right of younger women to control their bodies and their reproductive life.

As our governments negotiate the sustainable development goals, it's important to remind them that young people should not only be valued for their role in reducing poverty. All of our human rights must be recognised. Young people, especially young women, have a right to a quality education and access to youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health services that comply with our needs to control all aspects of our sexual lives. Only then will we achieve truly sustainable development.

Diakhoumba Gassama, Senegalese Council of Women, Senegal

Although Senegal has signed numerous African and international agreements guaranteeing universal access to sexual and reproductive health and rights, Senegalese young people, especially young women, are still not able to exercise their fundamental rights to have control over and decide freely on matters related to their bodily integrity, sexuality, reproduction, sexual orientation and gender identity.

This is the result not only of the lack of implementation of progressive laws, but also the pervasive culture of silence among families, communities and even service providers on matters regarding sexuality.

To address this, youth centres have been created to provide sex education, but they are restricted to certain age groups (mostly 15-19) and heavily influenced by patriarchal and religious views, limiting evidence-based information on HIV and Aids prevention, family planning, and sexual and gender-based violence prevention.

The lack of investment in rights-based comprehensive sex education means very few young women use sexual and reproductive health services before the age of 18, less than a third of those aged 15 to 24 have profound knowledge on HIV, and many single women have unsatisfied contraceptive needs.

Senegal's very restrictive law on abortion (which is still illegal even in cases of rape and incest) is currently being debated, thanks to various feminist and human rights collectives asking for urgent reform. Hopefully, decriminalisation will reduce the number of unsafe abortions, which account for 13% of maternal deaths.

In a country that prides itself as a leader for democracy and gender equality, Senegal must take the necessary steps to ensure that young women have access to sexuality education. Only by providing them with the information they need to protect and enjoy their reproductive health and rights will Senegalese young women be equipped to fully contribute and participate in the development of Senegal as a resilient nation.

Landmark agreement Hosni Mubarak, Egypt's former president, addresses the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development, which had a shaping influence on global population policy. Photograph: UN Photo

Sarah Gold, International Women's Health Coalition, US

The current Commission on Population and Development feels like the crossroads of two age-old wars – the war on women and the war on people living in poverty.

As I hear governments debating my right to make decisions about my own body, I feel a little sick. As I hear my government and those of other developed countries burying their heads in the sand, pretending not to see the enormous economic inequalities between developed and developing countries, my heart sinks. I think about what these debates taking place in fancy negotiating rooms at the UN really mean for women in my own community.

Two-thirds of women who get abortions in the US cite not being able to afford a child as one of the main reasons for their decision. The perverse irony is that, under most circumstances, the US government continues to deny federal funding for abortion to American women, including those enrolled in Medicaid, our country's health insurance programme for low-income communities. The same women struggling to secure housing, health insurance, and a living wage are being denied a say in the shape of their own lives and families.

These wars can only be won if we fight for economic and reproductive justice together. As governments define development priorities for 2015 and beyond, we need them to stand up for our sexual and reproductive rights as well as our economic and social rights. Strategies to address poverty in the US and in all countries cannot neglect access to abortion, among other critical sexual and reproductive healthcare services. And strategies to advance sexual and reproductive rights are incomplete without tackling the deeply rooted inequalities within and between countries. We can only thrive when all of our human rights are respected, protected and fulfilled.