“The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is the world’s blueprint for a better future for all on a healthy planet. On World Population Day, we recognize that this mission is closely interrelated with demographic trends including population growth, ageing, migration and urbanization.”

UN Secretary-General António Guterres

World Population Day, which seeks to focus attention on the urgency and importance of
population issues, was established by the then-Governing Council of the United Nations
Development Programme in 1989, an outgrowth of the interest generated by the Day of
Five Billion, which was observed on 11 July 1987.
This year’s World Population Day calls for global attention to the unfinished business of
the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development . Twenty-five years
have passed since that landmark conference, where 179 governments recognized that
reproductive health and gender equality are essential for achieving sustainable
development.
In November, UNFPA, together with the governments of Kenya and Denmark, will be
convening a high-level conference in Nairobi to accelerate efforts to achieve these unmet goals. On World Population Day, advocates from around the world are calling on leaders, policymakers, grassroots organizers, institutions and others to help make reproductive health and rights a reality for all.

Why Do We Mark International Days?
International days are occasions to educate the public on issues of concern, to mobilize
political will and resources to address global problems, and to celebrate and reinforce
achievements of humanity. The existence of international days predates the establishment of the United Nations, but the UN has embraced them as a powerful advocacy tool. More information available here .