Reproductive health: Govt, UNFPA train youth officers

AS part of effort to safeguard the reproductive health of adolescents in Lagos State, the Office of the Youth and Social Development in conjunction with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), recently held a training session for 50 youth officers in the state’s skill acquisition centres.

The participants included youth development officers, principals of skill acquisition centres, administrative officers at the skill acquisition centres and nursing officers in charge of Youth Friendly Desk at the Public Health Centres.

Speaking at the event, Head, Lagos Liason Office of UNFPA, Dr. Omolaso Omosehin, said the objective of the training, which is the seventh in its series, is to increase access to sexual reproductive health and development services for the youth, build the capacity of officers to handle sexual reproductive health issues and other developmental challenges faced by the youth, and
Increase the platform or point at which adolescent sexual reproductive health services is being offered.

Omosehin noted that the agency’s intervention in the most populous city in the country is worth the effort. “Lagos is the second fastest growing city in Africa and adolescents/youths aged 10 to 24 make up one-third of the country’s population.

“The reasons why we are focusing on Lagos is obvious: 4.8 percent of girls (15-19) have begun child bearing; approximately 24 percent of young people have had sexual intercourse before 18 years; less than 50 percent of young people have comprehensive knowledge about HIV; and less than 20 percent have been tested for HIV and received results in last 12 months,” he explained.

Permanent Secretary of Office of Youth and Social development, Mr. Adesegun Oshinyimika, disclosed that 62 abandoned babies were picked up in Lagos last year, while 6,628 sexual abuse and teenage pregnancy cases were treated in the last one year.