爱思英语编者按：每年的7月11日为世界人口日（World Population Day）。1987年7月11日，地球人口达到50亿。为纪念这个特殊的日子，1990年联合国根据其开发计划署理事会第36届会议的建议，决定将每年7月11日定为“世界人口日”，以唤起人们对人口问题的关注。据此，1990年7月11日遂成为第一个“世界人口日”。2011年10月31日，世界人口已达到70亿。

Secretary General’s Message on World Population Day
秘书长世界人口日致辞

11 July 2013
2013年7月11日

As a staunch advocate of the education, health and rights of girls and an enduring believer in the power of young women to transform our world, I welcome the focus of this year’s World Population Day on adolescent pregnancy.  This sensitive topic demands global attention.

作为一名教育、卫生和女孩权利的坚定倡导者和一个始终相信青年妇女有能力改造当今世界的人，我欢迎把少女怀孕问题作为今年世界人口日的重点。这个敏感议题需要得到全球的关注。

Far too many of the estimated 16 million teenage girls who give birth each year never had the opportunity to plan their pregnancy.  Complications from pregnancy and childbirth can cause grave disabilities, such as obstetric fistula, and are the leading cause of death for these vulnerable young women.  Adolescent girls also face high levels of illness, injury and death due to unsafe abortion.

在每年估计1600万名分娩少女中，从未进行过妊娠规划的人不胜枚举。妊娠和分娩并发症可以导致诸如产科瘘等严重残疾，也是造成弱势青年妇女死亡的主要原因。少女还因不安全堕胎而面临更多的疾病、受伤和死亡。

To address these problems, we must get girls into primary school and enable them to receive a good education through their adolescence.  When a young girl is educated, she is more likely to marry later, delay childbearing until she is ready, have healthier children, and earn a higher income.

为了解决这些问题，我们必须让女孩上小学，使她们能够在整个青春期接受良好的教育。少女如受过教育，就更有可能晚一点结婚，在作好准备前推迟生育，生下更健康的孩子并赚取更高的收入。

We must also provide all adolescents with age-appropriate, comprehensive education on sexuality.  This is especially important to empowering young women to decide when and if they wish to become mothers.  In addition, we must provide comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services that cover family planning and the prevention and treatment of sexually transmitted infections, including HIV.  And we must guarantee the maternal health services that women need.

我们还必须给所有适龄青春期男女提供全面的性教育。这对增强青年妇女的权能，使她们有权决定何时和是否愿意当母亲特别重要。此外，我们必须提供全面的性健康和生殖健康服务，包括计划生育以及预防和治疗包括艾滋病毒在内的性传播感染。我们还必须确保提供妇女所需要的孕产妇保健。

When we devote attention and resources to the education, health and wellbeing of adolescent girls, they will become an even greater force for positive change in society that will have an impact for generations to come. On this World Population Day, let us pledge to support adolescent girls to realize their potential and contribute to our shared future.

我们如果对少女的教育、健康和福祉更加关注并投入资源，她们就会成为社会中促进积极变革的更强大力量，对今后世代产生影响。值此世界人口日之际，让我们保证支持少女发挥潜能，为我们共同的未来做出贡献。