Youth
Young people under age 15 make up almost half of the population of Guatemala. Youth represent the future of the country, and investment in their health and education is perhaps the single most important strategy for Guatemala’s long-term development. Unfortunately, when it comes to sexual and reproductive health, Guatemalan adolescents are shockingly ill-equipped to make healthy, informed life decisions.
Many Guatemalans become sexually active at an early age, and approximately half of young women have at least one child by the age of 19. Because sex education is virtually non-existent in Guatemalan public schools, and cultural taboos often prevent these issues from being discussed at home, most adolescents begin their reproductive years with very little knowledge about the risks and responsibilities that accompany sexual activity. Many are also unaware of, or lack access to, services that would enable them to protect themselves and their partners from sexually-transmitted infections or unwanted pregnancies. Early childbearing puts the health of adolescent girls at risk and also contributes to school drop-outs, disparities in education and literacy levels between men and women, and low female participation in the formal workforce.
In order to address these issues, WINGS has developed two programs, Youth WINGS and Advocates for Youth. Launched in 2004, Youth WINGS is a peer education program that trains adolescents aged 14-19 in the department of Chimaltenango, Guatemala, to provide information and references to reproductive health services to their peers. Youth WINGS educators serve as resident experts on sexual and reproductive health in their communities, and advocate for responsible behavior among young people. In 2008, Youth WINGS educators reached more than 9,000 of their peers with information about sexual and reproductive health.
Ideally, sex education and reproductive health services would be available to all youth, regardless of age, location, and economic status, through the public health and education systems. In 2006, the Guatemalan government passed a legal measure, the Law of Universal Access to Family Planning, which included a guarantee of these rights for youth. Unfortunately, implementation of the law’s provisions related to youth has been slow, and many teachers and health care providers remain unaware of their legal obligations. In late 2007, WINGS initiated a program to work alongside the government to improve compliance with the law. Through this program, WINGS will train teachers and health service providers in Chimaltenango in both sex education and youth-friendly health services.
Read our youth success stories.