Recorded presentation

Dr. Seerat Nasir¹, Dr. Sona Sethi¹, and Dr. Win Win Aye². (1) Asia Regional Office, Planned Parenthood Federation of America-International, 37 Petchburi Road, Soi 15, Bangkok, Thailand, 66-2-2548954, seerat.nasir@ppfa.org, (2) Myanmar Red Cross Society, No. 42, Strand Road, P.O. Box No. 214, Yangon, Myanmar/Burma

Unmarried youth in Myanmar are not regarded as having reproductive health needs. The 1997 Reproductive Health Needs Assessment in Myanmar showed that contraceptive use among currently married young women in Myanmar is particularly low, as only 21.3 percent of 15-19 year olds, and 30.4 percent of 20-24 year olds, were currently using a modern form of contraception. The highest prevalence of sexually transmitted infections is among young men aged 15 to 24.

The “Youth to Youth: Peer Education for Reproductive Health” project in Myanmar has successfully overcome conservative cultural beliefs and practices to promote the practice of healthy sexual behaviors among youth, by increasing the utilization of reproductive health (RH) services. In partnership, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, PPFA-International and the Myanmar Red Cross Society (MRCS), developed and tested innovative community models that provided reproductive health education, counseling and services to youth 15-24 years of age. This project demonstrates what can be achieved by increasing the capacity of youth to provide sexuality education, RH counseling and services to their peers, and establishing partnerships with public and private service institutions through referrals. The paper will present the changes in use of contraception and practice of sexual behaviors over a three-year period from 2001-2004: condom use among men having pre-marital sex and those visiting commercial sex workers, pregnancy and abortion among unmarried and married women and couple protection rate among currently married women.

Learning Objectives: At the end of this session, participants will be able to

• Describe the knowledge and practice of sexual and reproductive health behaviors among married and unmarried adolescents in Myanmar.
• Design at least three successful strategies for preventing unwanted pregnancies, unsafe abortion and HIV/AIDS/STIs among youth through a peer-to-peer approach.
• List at least three benefits of establishing public and private partnerships to expand access to contraceptives and postabortion care in Myanmar.

Keywords: Peer Education, Youth Access

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.

Recorded presentation