The first International Conference on Population and Development of Asian Developing Countries is held in the city of Kunming, Yunnan province, on Aug 7. [Photo/ynu.edu.cn]

The first International Conference on Population and Development of Asian Developing Countries was held in the city of Kunming, Yunnan province, from Aug 7 to 9. 

The conference was hosted by the Development Institute of Yunnan University (YNU) in partnership with the Institute of Population Research of Peking University, China Population and Development Research Center, the United Nations Population Fund, the International Network for Integrative Research in Bangladesh, and the Department of Population Sciences at the University of Dhaka. 

Nearly 90 scholars from China, the United States, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Thailand attended the event. 

During the conference, academics from different countries shared their most recent findings on issues related to population and development, covering topics such as births, deaths, immigration, life span, human capital, reproductive health, marriage, family, teenagers’ development, and gender equality. 

In addition to a keynote speech, 12 separate groups were organized to discuss 12 different themes, including marriage, birth, health, immigration, aging, and gender. In each group, three or four speakers shared their perspectives on related issues. 

This conference is the second high-level academic seminar that the Development Institute of YNU has hosted since last year when it held the annual conference of the China Population Association. 

Through the conference, scholars secured better understandings toward the present status of population and development in different countries, as well as the issues each country faced and how they dealt with them. 

During the conference, representatives from YNU’s Development Institute held talks with their counterparts from the Department of Population Sciences at the University of Colombo, Department of Population Sciences at the University of Dhaka and the International Network for Integrative Research in Bangladesh, and reached a preliminary consensus on long-term cooperation and exchanges. 

The organizations also plan to establish an alliance to study demographics and development in Asian countries, in order to make frequent and regular exchanges between them possible.

Attendees at the conference pose for a photograph. [Photo/ynu.edu.cn]

A speaker reveals highlights of his latest research into population and development. [Photo/ynu.edu.cn]