Reaching and Empowering Adolescents to Make Informed Choices on Sexual and Reproductive Health

The project enables adolescents to better exercise their reproductive rights as well as make informed choices on their sexual and reproductive health. An innovative community-based model is used to promote positive gender norms among adolescents and their families. Project activities include: (1) training public health workers and private sector providers on gender-sensitive and adolescent-friendly sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) services delivery including family planning contraceptives post-abortion care and sexual and gender-based violence; and establishing and operating gender-sensitive adolescent-friendly safe spaces in health facilities to deliver SRHR services to adolescent boys and girls; (2) training community change agents (including religious and traditional leaders) to raise awareness in a gender-sensitive manner on SRHR and promote safe space activities for adolescent girls and boys partners parents and community members; and (3) supporting advocacy and coalition building between youth advocacy forums and like-minded organizations including women’s rights organizations to advocate for improved SRHR services within their communities. The project is expected to reach approximately 100 000 married and unmarried adolescents including 55 000 very young adolescents aged 10 to 14 directly and an additional 400 000 community members indirectly.

The project’s expected results include: (1) improved access to quality gender-sensitive and adolescent-friendly public and private sector sexual and reproductive health and rights services for unmarried and married adolescent girls and boys; (2) increased capacity of married and unmarried adolescent girls to make decisions about their own sexual and reproductive health and rights; and (3) increased capacity of youth-focused civil society groups including women’s rights organizations to advocate and integrate evidenced-based best practices in adolescent sexual and reproductive health and rights services in state policies and programmes.