SHENZHEN, July 10, 2012—In order to promote sexual and reproductive health and rights and youth participation, with the support from UNFPA China (United Nations Population Fund China Office), China Family Planning Association (CFPA) organized an event "Voices of Youth, Initiative of Cooperation" to commemorate the World Population Day 2012. The event also marks the beginning of the first week-long national youth peer educators training camp.
Mr. Arie Hoekman, UNFPA Representative to China, Mr. Yang Yuxue, the Standing Vice President of CFPA, youth representatives from China Youth Network and youth volunteers from across China, youth project officers from CFPA's local branches and other organizations, experts, and selected trainers from Y-peer participated in the event.
Among today's population of 7 billion, a quarter of them are young people aged 10-24. Though young people are perceived to be most healthy, their needs in sexual and reproductive health are often neglected. The unmet needs have led to young people facing increasing health risks. Globally, about 40 percent of new HIV infections are among young people aged 15-24. Complications of pregnancy and childbirth are the leading cause of death in Africa and South Asia among girls aged 15-19.
As the most populous country in the world, China is home to over 300 million young people aged 10-24. With the rapid development of the country and changing social values, the youth population's need for sexual and reproductive health information and services is growing. Chinese youth are exposed to increasing reproductive health risks, including unsafe sex, unplanned pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections including HIV. Supported by UNFPA and the National Working Committee on Children and Women under the State Council (NWCCW), Peking University conducted China's first national survey on youth access and utilization of sexual and reproductive health services. The findings indicated that about 60 per cent of unmarried youth are open to having sex before marriage; 22.4 per cent have had sex, and over half of them did not use any contraceptive method during their first sex act. Among female youth who have had sex, 21.3 per cent had unplanned pregnancies, and 86 per cent of them resorted to abortion. Only 4.4 per cent of youth were well informed about reproductive health and 14.4 per cent had correct knowledge about preventing HIV infection. These figures reflect huge gaps in meeting sexual and reproductive health needs of the young people.
Mr. Arie Hoekman, UNFPA's representative to China, stressed that by setting the theme of this year's World Population Day as Universal Access to Reproductive Health Services, the UN aims to reiterate the importance of the Millennium Development Goal on reproductive health, with is crucial for sustainable development. Mr. Hoekman said: "Every young person has the right to comprehensive sexuality education, and access to youth-friendly reproductive health services. With the right policies, investments and social support, young people can enjoy healthier lives free of poverty, violence and exploitation." He pointed out that in China the massive migration, sex ratio at birth imbalance, radical changes in communication technology all have aggravated risks facing today's youth and posed challenges in providing high quality and equitable services to them.
Through cooperation with UNFPA and other partners, CFPA explores ways to improve youth sexual and reproductive health. As a leading agency in the field of youth sexual and reproductive health, CFPA especially promotes youth participation in the conduct of these activities. Mr. Yang Yuxue, the Standing Vice President of CFPA said: "Today's event is an opportunity for us to listen to the voices of youth and to witness their passion and ability. CFPA will strengthen its cooperation with UNFPA and other partners, and continue to advocate for youth participation as a vehicle to expand youth-friendly services coverage."
Today's event featured young people's participation. The short play When I am Young performed by young migrants working in Shenzhen reflected the challenges related to sexual and reproductive health facing young people. China Youth Network members and youth representatives from all over China proposed a Chinese Youth Declaration on World Population Day, which advocates for young people to voice their needs and participate in policy formulation and service improvements. After the week-long peer educators training, these youth representatives will form a network of peer educators to disseminate sexual and reproductive health messages among their peers in China.
The municipal government of Shenzhen and Shenzhen Family Planning Association provided strong support in hosting this event. In recent years, Shenzhen has pioneered in innovations of sexual and reproductive health services provision among young migrant workers through partnership between Shenzhen Family Planning Association and the private sector.
