Why society has to ensure youths are in right path

THE future of any society lies in its youth. This being the case, society needs to ensure this young generation is guided into the right path. Reports indicate that Sub- Saharan Africa plays homage to 158 million young people aged 15-24; a number that is expected to rise to 281 million by 2050.

However, many young people across the region receive confusing and conflicting information about relationships and sex as they make the transition from childhood to adulthood.

And, in some places, young people are even denied access to accurate, lifesaving information and services, when adults avoid topics related to sexuality.

The fact that less than 50 per cent of young people demonstrate accurate knowledge about HIV prevention and transmission means that more information and education on sexual health is needed.

Moreover, early and unintended pregnancy is a major public health issue in the region, where adolescent girls (15-19 years) experience the highest rates of pregnancy in the world, largely because sex, marriage and pregnancy are often not voluntary or consensual for them, and many lack access to information to make informed decisions.

There is significant evidence on the positive impact of sexuality education on sexual behaviour and health – it is time to put that evidence of impact to practice.

It is on this backdrop the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) decided to roll-out the Our Rights, Our Lives, Our Future (O3) Programme (2018- 2022), which aims for a consistent reduction in new HIV infections, early and unintended pregnancies, gender-based violence, and child marriage.

O3 Plus project covers 16 higher learning institutes six of which are directly benefiting from the programme including University of Dar es Salaam (Mlimani campus), Dar es Salaam University College of Education (DUCE), Mkwawa University College of Education (MUCE), University of Dar es Salaam Mbeya College of Health and Allied Sciences (MCHAS) and Institute of Marine Sciences (IMS) in Zanzibar, Mineral Resource Institute (MRI) and the University of Dodoma (UDOM).

Other nine campuses including Mwalimu Nyerere Memorial Academy University, Institute of Rural Development (Mwanza Campus), St Augustine University of Tanzania (Mwanza Campus), University of Iringa, Ruaha Catholic University, Mbeya University College of Health and Allied Sciences, St John’s University of Tanzania (Dodoma), Zanzibar University and Tanzania Institute of Accounts are benefiting through networking and sharing good practices and selected interventions.

Research shows that youths have the potential to achieve development when they are supported to develop the right knowledge, skills, attitudes and values that will empower them to realise their health, well-being and dignity; develop respectful social and sexual relationships; consider the well-being of others that are affected by their choices; and understand and ensure the protection of their rights throughout their lives.

Through the 03 Plus project, UNESCO is supporting students from various higher learning institutions to introduce the so-called peer education programmes which have acted as a great asset in promoting healthy behavioural change among adolescents and young people.

Recently, the programme was rolled out to 80 youths including 36 females from UDOM empowered with necessary knowledge and skills to support and communicate effectively with their peers on matters related to adolescence and sexuality; reproductive health and rights, sexually transmitted infections and HIV; relationships; genderbased violence; and resource management.

UNESCO National Professional Officer for Education, Health and Wellbeing Programme, Mr Mathias Luhanya indicated that this programme has helped to set an exemplary model of empowering UDOM’s peer educators, who through various approaches including leveraging on both formal and informal discussions has helped to shape, mold and enhance young people at university to make informed choices about their lives.

According to him, the training not only helped participants to gain knowledge and skills that will help their counterparts but also enabled them to practically address their own challenges. He cited an example of a participant who opened up about a 10,000/- debt she owes a mobile money service since 2019, but decided not to pay.

“The programme helped the participant to offset the debt…Certainly, it was not just about not having money that inhibited the debtor from offsetting the debt, rather, it was more about understanding the need for, and the attitude toward debt repayment.”

Being exposed to debt management skills, the respective participant was able to see and realise that by not paying debts, she was denying herself the opportunity to save, be trusted, and or do business that would involve making transactions through the respective mobile company.

Mr Luhanya highlighted that the testimony and many others implied the training had immediate tangible results for the beneficiaries. Over the period of 1 year, the project has trained 255 peer educators who have reached 2,644 learners in six university campuses DUCE, MUCE, UDSM-MCHAS, UDOM, MRIDodoma and SAUT.

As a result, UDOM Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic, Research and Consultancy), Professor Razak Lokina acknowledged that the programme was of its own kind, citing factors such as the recruitment process, depth and breadth of content offered to their students.

“I really wish to appreciate UNESCO for coming up with such a programme that empowers young people to serve as peer counsellors to their colleagues. It would not be easy for me as an adult to talk to young people about their concerns, as most would simply say I am too old to understand their challenges,” he stated pledging commitment to upscale and adopt it in UDOM’s annual budgets initiative.

The commitment lays a good foundation for enhancing project sustainability and serves as a catalyst for increased attention and support by the respective institution to young people’s challenges in higher learning institutions.

In demonstrating their commitment to promoting behaviour change at their campus, beneficiaries of the programme developed messages resonating on the topics they had learnt, with the view to share and enlighten their colleagues in making healthy choices about their lives and dreams.

These messages were shared through various social media platforms including Twitter, Instagram and WhatsApp accounts, and they received quite an encouraging number of engagements.

These initiatives are likely to be effective in delivering messages to a wider university population as most young people tend to spend a significant portion of their precious time on social media.

This is expected to shape young people’s discussion, especially on relationship and reproductive issues, thus contributing to addressing among others, unintended pregnancies, GBV Issues and new HIV infections among young people.

The O3 Plus project continues to ensure that young people in Higher and Tertiary Education Institutions (HTEIs) in Tanzania realise positive health, education and gender equality outcomes through sustained reductions in new HIV infections, unintended pregnancy, and sexual and gender-based violence.