Joshua A. Anunibe
What actions are you taking to promote and protect the health and rights of women and young people worldwide?
i. Abstinence programs for youth. Provision of adequate information about contraception and condoms to help prevent unintended pregnancy, HIV and other STIs when they do become sexually active.
ii. Comprehensive Sex Education
Comprehensive sex education is a holistic approach that will be used to teach young people about sex and sexual health; it is comprised of age and culturally appropriate, medically accurate information about reducing the risk of pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases and infections (STDs & STIs). Comprehensive sex education also introduces information on relationships, decision-making, assertiveness, and skill building to resist social/peer pressure.
iii. Improved Family Planning/contraceptive access/condom availability. Making condoms and family planning services available in all health centers and clinics will help to prevent millions of unintended pregnancies every year. We believe that every person has the right to decide when they want to have children and how many.
IV. Promotion of Emergency contraception (EC)
Emergency contraception also known as “the morning-after pill” is a safe and effective way to prevent pregnancy after unprotected intercourse.
v. Establishment of counseling/Right centers
Special counseling/Right centers will also be established to take care of women’s health needs/issues and to champion women health rights.
vi. Advocacy campaigns
Advocacy visits will be intensified to reach government agencies, House members/representatives, donor agencies, the senate committee on health, other national assembly members on the need for adequate funding of maternal and reproductive health programs especially in schools.
vii. Men’s Education on Family Planning Issues
In the rural communities especially in the northern parts where males lack basic family planning education or skills and usually leaving family planning issues to their wives or women and even sometimes acting as barriers to effective family planning.These men will be involved through programs designed to facilitate their participation in such issues such as:
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• Advocacy to opinion, community and religious leaders to help enlist men’s participation and re-examining laws that tend to promote multiple marriages and rights of women which have been constantly eroded based on these prevailing laws/traditions .
• Peer education and training programs for selected men, both young and adults to help reach many others and help reduce marital infidelity.
• Assisting them in improving their means of livelihood along with those of their wives through skills, jobs, and income generating opportunities.
What is your vision of lasting change for yourself and for the world's young people?
My vision for a lasting change includes achieving the following goals as soon as possible:
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1. Increased participation of men in maternal/reproductive health programs.
2. Increased availability and accessibility to contraceptive devices, information and condoms.
3. Increased (to over 90%) patronage to STIs/HIV clinics and counseling centers.
4. Improved rights of young women in sex negotiation, especially in the north, including improved understanding by males/husbands about women’s rights.
5. IEC materials with quality and factual information on sexual issues for women developed.
6. Comprehensive sexual education introduced in schools, colleges, women’s centers, and institutions.
7. Policies are put in place to check abuse of women’s and young people’s health and reproductive rights, especially during crisis.
If you could tell world leaders one thing, what would it be?
“Rich countries and world leaders could fully fund the estimated $944 billion that is needed from now through 2015 to meet all Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and health systems strengthening needs in less developed countries.”
Developed countries have, however, contributed over $2.5 trillion in direct bailouts and over $6 trillion in guarantees so far. This is commendable, however, it is still necessary for the world leaders and richest countries to support their words with concrete action and back up their promises with the money necessary to fulfill them. In other words, more funds should be made available to improve health services and protection for young people, especially in developing countries.
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