Episodes

  • Comprehensive Sexuality Education: Empowering Youth for a Healthier Future

    Comprehensive Sexuality Education: Empowering Youth for a Healthier Future
    Aug 12 2024
    In this episode, we delve into the critical role of Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) in addressing sexual and reproductive health issues among young people in Eastern and Southern Africa. The conversation features insights from UNFPA representatives, government officials, civil society organisations, and youth advocates, who share their experiences and strategies for effectively implementing CSE programs in the region.

    Key Points:
    - Essential Components of CSE: The episode explores the fundamental elements of effective CSE, which include providing scientifically accurate information, promoting gender equality, encouraging healthy attitudes and behaviours, and imparting essential life skills. The importance of making CSE age-appropriate, culturally relevant, and adaptable to different contexts is also emphasised.

    - Delivery Modalities: We discuss the various ways in which CSE can be delivered, including through in-school curricula, community-based programs, and digital platforms. The flexibility in delivery is key to reaching diverse groups of young people and ensuring that they receive the education they need.

    - Challenges and Resistance: The discussion highlights the opposition and resistance often encountered in implementing CSE, stemming from misconceptions and external influences. Participants share their experiences in navigating these challenges and stress the importance of engaging with stakeholders, including parents, community leaders, and religious groups, to build support for CSE initiatives.

    - Intersectionality of CSE: The episode touches on the broader context in which CSE operates, exploring its intersection with issues like climate change, economic challenges, and the need for accountability and youth leadership. The participants emphasise that CSE is not just about sexual and reproductive health, but also about empowering young people to navigate complex societal issues.

    - Inclusivity and Accessibility: Ensuring that no young person is left behind is a key theme in this discussion. The participants advocate for CSE programs that are inclusive and accessible to all, including marginalised groups, and stress the importance of tailoring programs to meet the needs of diverse populations.

    - Youth Leadership and Accountability: The importance of youth leadership in the design and implementation of CSE programs is underscored, along with the need for accountability mechanisms to ensure that these programs effectively address the needs of young people.

    The episode concludes with a discussion on the critical role of CSE in promoting sexual and reproductive health and rights, empowering young people, and contributing to the overall development of nations in the Eastern and Southern African region. The participants call for continued advocacy and collaboration to overcome challenges and ensure that CSE reaches all who need it. Twitter · Facebook · YouTube · Donate · Website
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    1 hr and 12 mins
  • Breaking Barriers: Ensuring Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights

    Breaking Barriers: Ensuring Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights
    Aug 12 2024
    In this episode, we address the critical challenges faced by women and girls with disabilities in accessing sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) services. Our discussion brings together insights from representatives of UNFPA, Disability Trust, health workers, and advocates dedicated to advancing disability inclusion in SRHR.

    Key Points:
    - Barriers to Access: We explore the various obstacles that people with disabilities face in accessing SRHR services, including the lack of accessible infrastructure, inadequate communication materials, and negative attitudes from healthcare workers. These barriers prevent equitable access to essential health services.

    - Need for Inclusive Policies: The episode emphasises the importance of developing inclusive policies, building the capacity of healthcare workers, and raising community awareness to overcome these barriers. Inclusive approaches are crucial to ensuring that SRHR services are accessible to all.

    - Empowerment and Rights Awareness: Empowering women and girls with disabilities to understand and assert their rights is highlighted as a key strategy. We discuss how education and advocacy can help them claim their bodily autonomy and access the services they need.

    - Role of Organisations: The vital work of organisations like UNFPA and Disability Trust is discussed, focusing on their efforts to advocate for disability inclusion, provide training to healthcare workers, and support pilot projects aimed at creating inclusive SRHR services.

    - Youth with Disabilities: The episode delves into the specific challenges faced by young people with disabilities in accessing SRHR information and services. We also discuss the importance of involving them in decision-making processes to ensure their needs are addressed.

    - Gender-Based Violence: We address the alarming prevalence of gender-based violence and sexual violence against women and girls with disabilities, stressing the need for accessible support services and justice mechanisms tailored to their needs.

    - Intersectionality and Economic Empowerment: The discussion also covers the intersection of disability, gender, and economic empowerment, highlighting how these factors influence bodily autonomy and the importance of addressing them collectively.

    The episode concludes with a call for collaborative efforts from governments, healthcare systems, communities, and organisations to ensure that the SRHR needs and rights of women and girls with disabilities are met on an equal basis with others. Twitter · Facebook · YouTube · Donate · Website
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    1 hr and 17 mins
  • HIV/AIDS

    HIV/AIDS
    Aug 12 2024
    In this episode, we delve into HIV/AIDS epidemic in East and Southern Africa, with a particular focus on its impact on youth and women. The discussion covers a range of topics, highlighting the critical need for comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services and the ongoing challenges faced in addressing the epidemic.

    Key Points:
    - UNFPA's Strategic Plan: We explore UNFPA's mission to achieve universal access to sexual and reproductive health, realise reproductive rights, reduce maternal mortality, end gender-based violence, and address family planning needs. Central to achieving these goals is the fight against HIV.

    - Disproportionate Impact on Women and Girls: Women and girls are bearing the brunt of the HIV epidemic, particularly in Eastern and Southern Africa, where they accounted for 63% of new infections in 2021. We discuss the vulnerabilities of key populations, including sex workers and men who have sex with men.

    - Contributing Factors to High HIV Rates: The episode examines factors like multiple concurrent partnerships, low condom use, endemic sexually transmitted infections, low male circumcision rates, and gender power imbalances that contribute to the region's high HIV rates.

    - Youth and Persistent New Infections: Despite ongoing efforts in comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) and medical services, new HIV infections among young people persist. We discuss the role of coerced sex, lack of access to condoms, lack of knowledge about safer sex, and the pervasive stigma in this context.

    - Barriers to Prevention: Challenges in accessing HIV prevention methods like condoms and PrEP are discussed, with a focus on the difficulties faced by young people, rural populations, and key populations like LGBTQ+ individuals due to stigma and limited resources.

    - Strategic Responses: The conversation highlights various strategies to combat the epidemic, including strengthening health systems, innovative service delivery models, addressing legal and policy barriers, empowering youth leadership, and combating stigma and discrimination.

    Notable Statistics:
    In 2021, 63% of new HIV infections in Eastern and Southern Africa were among women and girls. A 2012 study revealed that 28% of school girls in South Africa were HIV positive, compared to 4% of boys.

    Join us as we explore these critical issues and discuss the way forward in combating the HIV/AIDS epidemic in East and Southern Africa. Twitter · Facebook · YouTube · Donate · Website
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    1 hr and 23 mins
  • Digital Violence

    Digital Violence
    Dec 12 2022
    In this first episode, we take a look at digital violence and how the Internet can be a hateful, hostile place, particularly for women, girls, racial and ethnic minorities, LGBTQ+ and other marginalized communities. We explore the extent to which digital violence is prevalent in the East and Southern Africa Region. In the past few years, with the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, 85 percent of women have experienced or witnessed digital violence. Digital violence, which is prevalent, repetitive, perpetual and pervasive, violates a person's privacy, dignity, autonomy and rights and it can be devastating.

    This episode highlights the need to end cyberstalking to hate speech and the non-consensual use of images and video, such as deepfakes. When someone infringes on music or film copyright, digital platforms remove the content immediately.

    Governments have passed laws making copyright infringement illegal and digital platforms have devised ways to identify and prevent the unauthorized use of copyrighted material. UNFPA calls for the same protections and repercussions must also extend to individuals and their photos.

    UNFPA calls for technology companies and policymakers to take digital violence seriously.

    Time for change and sign the petition now. Go to: https://www.unfpa.org/bodyright Learn more about the Global 16 Days Campaign · Claim your bodyright · Twitter · Facebook · YouTube · Donate · Website
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    1 hr and 34 mins
  • Welcome to Hear Her

    Welcome to Hear Her
    Dec 11 2021
    Hello and welcome to "Hear Her" the podcast of UNFPA, East and Southern Africa.

    With the global population recently reaching 8 billion, we can celebrate many signs of human progress; better health and longer lives brought us to this point.

    Yet a sobering reality is how uneven progress has been and how systematically violence against women and girls still robs so many of dignity, well-being and the right to peace.

    But we're making headway and there are some positive stories to tell.

    In this podcast, you will hear voices from all walks of life with a common vision of building a more just, equitable, and sustainable future we all design and creating a life of dignity, peace and wellbeing for each 10 year old child.

    We will be hearing from technical experts to humanitarians, artists, community leaders, and the youth on a variety of issues. We will cover a range of topics from growing online violence to the scourge of HIV AIDS, disability, and other critical sexual reproductive health and rights issues.

    Their voices matter and it is the heart of all we do at UNFPA as we adapt to a changing world. Twitter · Facebook · YouTube · Donate · Website
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    1 min