Under the leadership of Nafis Sadik, the U.N. Population Fund has been transformed from an organization that foisted contraceptives on women in order to meet fertility-control targets to one that has as its central mission giving women more power not just over their own fertility but over health care, education, and many other aspects of their lives. Sadik, a Pakistani obstetrician who became executive director of the fund in 1987, will retire at the end of this year. Her push for women’s rights has rankled not only some Islamic and developing nations, but also the U.S. Congress, which has withheld funding because of the population fund’s position that women should have access to safe abortions as a last resort. This year, the Clinton administration has requested a $169 million increase in international family planning levels, and Congress is expected to debate the issue soon.
