Talk to your children about sex education

Sexual and reproductive health (SRH) service providers have been advised to equip themselves with right information on what the law says regarding provision of such services or else, may get into trouble if they operate outside the law.

Speaking during a dialogue involving lawyers, youth and SRH service providers, Rose Wakikona, a lawyer working with Center for Health, Human rights and Development (CEHURD) as a programme officer said some laws are restrictive on who should access the services or who should not. 

She said knowing what the law allows or prohibits enables the providers to operate within the legal environment making their work easier, but also enables them to know how to deal with the restrictions.

"For instance, the law clearly states that anyone below the age of 18 should not be given SRH services without the consent of their parents/guardians.  Anyone who does so is liable to be arrested personally or as an organization," she said 

"All service providers of sexual and reproductive services need to be well equipped with the law or engaging in illegal activities can get them into problems," she added 

The meeting took place at CEHURD's office in Ntinda on Friday, and participants were asking government to accelerate youth participation in decisions regarding their SRHR. 

SRH services does not only mean provision of contraceptives like condoms or pills, but also providing services to prevent, diagnose and treat sexually transmitted diseases, comprehensive sexuality education, and empowering young people to know and exercise their rights, including the right to delay marriage and the right to refuse unwanted sexual advances. 

Key issues discussed during the dialogue include; policy makers making decisions especially on the SRH service without engaging young people, and therefore young people feel their needs and demands regarding SRH services are often neglected.

The Ministry of Health's decision to recall the sexual reproductive health and rights guidelines, saying these are some of the decisions that will impact on youth access to SRHR. 

Shamim Namugerwa, an SRH advocate and peer educator said many Ugandan parents do not have time to talk to young people about sex education, and as thus, young people have turned to ‘uncle google' which gives them unexplained information, sometimes, wrong information and they(young people) are applying what they learning through Google without the knowledge of their parents.

(L-R) The Centre for Health, Human Rights and Development (CEHURD) Lawyer Rose Wakikona, Sexual and Reproductive Health Advocater, Reach a Hand Uganda Shamim Namugerwa, Peer Educator Restless Development Milton Mumbere and the Program Manager CEHURD Noor Nakibuuka sharing a light moment during the Youth - Lawyer dialogue held at CEHURD head offices in Kyambogo on Friday, December 08, 2017. Photo by Shamim Saad.

"Do not spend all the time working and forget to talk to your children especially the young people about sex education. The truth of the matter is, they are searching for this information, and if they do not get it from you, they will look for it from anywhere else, including from wrong sources," Namugerwa told parents.

Youth and adolescents in Uganda face multiple sexual and reproductive health issues, among them, unwanted and high teenage pregnancies, unsafe abortions, maternal death and disability, sexually transmitted infections (STIs), gender-based-violence. 

Recent statistics indicate that 25% of adolescents aged 15-19% in Uganda have begun child bearing, although this number decreases with increasing level of education. 

Noor Nakibuuka Musisi, working with CEHURD saying without clear laws and policies, the country is likely to face more rates of teenage pregnancies, unsafe abortions, maternal and neonatal deaths. 

She said the time is now for youth to participate in decision making regarding SRHR.