16 Dec 2014

Ms Sheenaz EL Halabi of the Ministry of Health says a youth friendly clinic and the safe guard youth programme aim to strengthen the provision of comprehensive sexuality education and promotion of youth networks.

Speaking during the official opening of the youth friendly clinic and the safeguard youth programme in Mahalapye recently, she said youth were faced with complex health challenges and such initiative was important as it helped them deal with such issues.

Therefore, she said such facilities provided the youth with a platform, which they could use to address these issues in comfort without fear of stigmatisation.

She stressed that one of the studies done by the Ministry of Health had revealed that 21 per cent of school going youth aged between 10 and 19 were sexually active, hence abstinence was highly recommended. 

In light of the above, she said counter active initiatives that would care for the youth not only from government but other stakeholders such as NGOs and parents should be introduced.

Government, she said, had shown a significant and consistent amount of commitment to address such issues, hence the provision of youth friendly services.

Ms Aisha -Cammara Drammeh, a representative of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), a global organisation which is one of the sponsors of the initiative, said Southern Africa had become known as the home of HIV/AIDS, unsafe abortions among the youth and forced marriages among young African girls.

Therefore, she said the programme would provide the youth, especially young girls with a platform where they could counter the challenges by coming together to speak about them as well as access help from health professionals trained at dealing with their problems. 

She further said “an Africa that is free of such stigma is desirable,” and implored that it was critical to invest in the youth who were empowered, healthy as well as reproductive and problem free. ENDS