A/HRC/14/39 47. In the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995), States resolved to strengthen and reorient health services in order to ensure universal access to quality health services for women and girls, reduce ill health and maternal morbidity and achieve worldwide the agreed upon goal of reducing maternal mortality by at least 50 per cent of the 1990 levels by the year 2000 and a further one half by the year 2015. Commitments were made to ensure that the necessary services are available at each level of the health system, and to make reproductive health care accessible, through the primary health-care system, to all individuals of appropriate ages (para. 107 (i)). The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action further recognized the health impact of unsafe abortion as a major public health concern (para. 107 (j)), confirming the position taken in the International Conference on Population and Development, and Governments agreed to consider reviewing laws containing punitive measures against women who have undergone illegal abortion (para. 107 (k)). 48. At the Millennium Summit in 2000, States resolved to reduce maternal mortality by three quarters by the year 2015. This commitment is encapsulated in the Millennium Development Goals, which derive from the Millennium Summit commitments, and which have come to play a defining role in international development efforts. Specifically Goal 5 concerns improving maternal health and ensuring universal access to reproductive health care. 49. The World Health Assembly has confirmed a global consensus around cornerstone interventions: family planning, skilled birth attendance, emergency obstetric and newborn care.99 WHO is currently revising its publication Safe Abortion: Technical and Policy Guidance for Health Systems and producing new clinical practice guidelines for health providers in order to further assist countries in providing safe abortion care. B. Services 50. UNICEF, UNFPA, the World Bank and WHO have recently joined efforts to accelerate progress in reducing maternal mortality and morbidity, with the right to health as a central principle, and through a human rights approach to United Nations country programming. The joint initiative is collectively known as the “Health 4” or “H4”. During the coming year, the four agencies will enhance their support to the countries with the highest maternal mortality, starting with 6, scaling up to 25, with an expansion to 60 countries.100 Through the “H4”, in partnership with other stakeholders, the organizations are, inter alia: costing national plans and rapidly mobilizing required resources; scaling up quality health services to ensure universal access to reproductive health, especially with respect to family planning, skilled attendance at delivery and emergency obstetric and newborn care; ensuring linkages with HIV prevention and treatment; and addressing the urgent need for skilled health workers, particularly midwives. 51. Other joint initiatives include: the International Planned Parenthood Federation (East and South-East Asia and Oceania Region) initiative entitled “SPRINT” aimed at increasing access to sexual and reproductive health information and services for populations surviving crisis and living in post-crisis situations;101 and the joint International Confederation of Midwives/UNFPA Global Programme on Midwifery promoting the professionalization of the midwifery practice in 12 African countries, supporting national efforts to improve 99 100 101 18 UNFPA, UNICEF and WHO joint response to the note verbale. UNFPA response to the note verbale, p. 12. The Sprint initiative is carried out in partnership with the Government of Australia, UNFPA, the Australian Reproductive Health Alliance and the University of New South Wales. GE.10-12949