Telling Young People What They Need to Know

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Telling Young People What They Need to Know

A Case Study in Reproductive Health

The population of the Philippines continues to grow at a rapid rate of 2.3 per cent annually; the country has the highest fertility rate in South-East Asia. Over 5 million married women are in need of birth spacing or control. Socio-cultural factors inhibit family planning practice. The low rate of contraceptive use at 36 per cent partly reflects that situation.

There are other statistics that indicate the unsatisfactory status of reproductive health among Filipino women. Filipino mothers at high risk in childbearing constitute 63 per cent of the country's women of reproductive age, half of whom suffer from anaemia. Each year 1,600 women die of pregnancy-related causes. In addition, a significant number of unsafe abortions have led to maternal deaths. Young people in the Philippines are becoming sexually active at a younger age. This trend hinders efforts to improve the reproductive health situation of the country. While there are a number of sex education programmes for youth, they are limited in scope.

A 1995 study on youth fertility by the University of the Philippines revealed that almost one out of four young males had paid for sex at least once and that the highest proportion who had done so were in the youngest group aged 15 to 17 years. It was also found that condom use was minimal among male youth who had engaged in casual intercourse with sex workers during the 12 months preceding the study. Against this background, the Family Planning Association of the Philippines (FPOP) has been operating the Development and Family Education for Youth (DAFLEY) project since 1983.

The objectives of the project are to provide: (a) a comprehensive package of information, education, counseling and reproductive health services which are designed to help youth understand the adverse consequences of teenage pregnancy and early marriage; and (b) livelihood skills training for out-of-school youths.

The project has two major components; one is the provision of services through the Teen Centre and the other through outreach activities. The Teen Centre, which is the base of the project in Davao, undertakes a variety of activities. The Centre is equipped with recreational facilities and a mini-library, which are open for daily use. The receiving room, equipped with audio-visual facilities and indoor games, are used for group discussions, meetings, and social events.

Separate rooms are provided for counseling and telephone hotline services are run by well-trained youth volunteers. Counseling is undertaken in a private room to ensure confidentiality, while the hotline telephone service is available for youth who prefer anonymous counseling. The latter service provides alternative modes of counseling.

The volunteers at the Centre also produce educational materials concerning youth health which they disseminate widely to young people. Another means of information dissemination undertaken by the Centre is through its newsletter, Peryodikit, which highlights activities conducted by the Teen Centre. In addition to the activities at the Teen Centre, a number of outreach activities are carried out, including: (a) income generation activities, for which loans are provided to selected trained youth to initiate income generating projects such as raising livestock; and (b) community activities such as sports, as a way of effectively reaching youth.

Implementation of the DAFLEY project is heavily reliant on youth volunteers, making it a youth-to-youth scheme. The project, which has received many awards, has served successfully as a centre for adolescents to obtain information and advice about their reproductive health.