Education
Source: The Observer (Kampala)
This includes adolescents aged 10 to19, as well as youth aged 15 to 24. It is in this age-range that most young people begin to actively explore their sexuality and, therefore, require sexual and reproductive health information and services.
Although young people have sexual and reproductive health rights, society has in most cases ignored this aspect, often perceiving them as "young" in the sense that they do not or should not even have any sexual reproductive health needs at all. Evidence shows us that the sexual and reproductive health rights of young people are important and should be made a priority.
Ignoring the sexual and reproductive health rights of young people will not stop them from having sex or even early pregnancies. Ignoring their sexual reproductive health rights does not imply that they are too young to make reproductive health decisions. On an almost daily basis, we see young people making reproductive health decisions.
Unfortunately, many times these decisions are based on ignorance and lack of information. For instance, the fact that in Uganda one in four teenage girls (24%) has had a baby or is pregnant shows that teenage girls are sexually active. Denying them their rights to reproductive health information and services, including family planning, would not be right.
According to a study carried out by the World Health Organisation (WHO) in 2006, if the sexual reproductive health needs of young people are to be met, there should be a focus on training service providers, improving health facilities as well as informing and mobilising communities to generate demand and community support.
Community mobilisation works as an avenue for creating awareness among community members so as to create a supportive environment for the youth to freely access sexual reproductive health services. Community mobilisation and sensitisation however can only work if complimented with building community support which is a prerequisite if we are to ensure that young people feel that they can freely access reproductive health services.
It requires a comprehensive approach that involves interventions targeting three audiences, including the young people, their parents or caretakers, teachers, for those in school, as well as health providers who could also serve the youth out of school.
Notable among the successful interventions to increase community support include sensitisation programmes such as mass media outreaches that involve the youth, parents, teachers, as well as community leaders.
Others may include community education or information, sessions which should be carried out in locations close to health facilities, such that in case the young people need to access services, they are referred to the facilities in close proximity to where they stay.
Such interventions often have a positive impact on both the young people and the community as they encourage dialogue among both groups, encouraging young people to utilise the services provided without feeling judged.
Communities, therefore, need to be mobilised to join efforts geared towards providing services to meet the sexual reproductive health needs of young people.
This in the end will create opportunities for increased demand for the services as well as an enabling environment where young people will feel that they can freely access these services without being judged by their families and communities.