Challenges

Sub-Saharan Africa is home to 158 million youth between the ages of 15 and 24, a figure expected to rise to 281 million by 2050. This demographic dividend represents tremendous potential, but there are risks if the barriers to young people’s health and education (including HIV, sexual and gender-based violence, adolescent pregnancy and child marriage) are not addressed. Africa’s female youth face a disproportionately high risk of HIV infection. Three out of four new HIV infections among those aged 15–19 are among young women, and seven out of ten young women do not have comprehensive HIV knowledge. Early and unintended pregnancy and gender-based violence pose serious threats to young people’s health and right to education. Investing in the education and health of adolescents and young people is critical for them to realize their rights to health, well-being, education and full and equal participation in society.

Toward a Solution

The Our Rights, Our Lives, Our Future (O3) Programme seeks to improve sexual and reproductive health (SRH) as well as gender and education outcomes for young people in sub-Saharan Africa, through sustained reductions in new HIV and other sexually transmitted infections, early and unintended pregnancy, and gender-based violence. It is the largest comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) programme in sub-Saharan Africa, covering 33 countries. It seeks to address SDG Target 4.7: Education for sustainable development and global citizenship.

The O3 Programme promotes and facilitates South-South learning and cross-fertilization of ideas through the CSE Regional Learning Platform, exchange visits and face-to-face meetings. The web-based CSE Regional Learning Platform seeks to connect different stakeholders across sub-Saharan Africa (such as policymakers, curriculum developers, teachers and health workers). The platform has resulted in a digital library with 300+ resources including curriculums, books, teachers’ guides, COVID-19-related materials, and research and evaluation reports; an “Ask and Share” forum where users can engage in discussions on key issues; and Connect with Respect, a tool which addresses school-related gender-based violence (SRGBV), initially piloted in only four countries in Eastern and Southern Africa and now being scaled up extensively across the region.

Furthermore, the O3 programme provides regional teacher training/ capacity-building workshops that offer peer-to-peer experience for teachers and government officials from different countries. In 2021, more than 30 million learners were reached with CSE while more than 136,000 pre-service teachers and 188,000 in-service teachers have been trained on CSE since 2018. Since 2018, the programme has reached more than 30,000 parent-teacher associations and more than 20 million community members. Launched in 2021, the O3 Plus programme, which targets students in higher and tertiary education institutions (HTEIs) expects to reach more than 252,000 students in 33 HTEIs across eight countries in sub-Saharan Africa and to train more than 7,000 health care professionals and peer counsellors on providing youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services.

A CSE Community of Practice (CoP) is currently being established, as part of ongoing efforts to improve knowledge dissemination, facilitate learning and stimulate creativity. The CoP will provide an opportunity for teachers and other practitioners to share their knowledge, questions and achievements, and to search for latest evidence and recommendations regarding CSE delivery.

The O3 Programme has adopted the innovative approach of a three-tier country system of programme acceleration countries, focus countries and networking countries, where they all benefit from common regional activities, joint regional training and guidance materials, depending on their individual readiness to participate and their specific needs. This innovative approach enables the transfer of knowledge and experience across participating countries, allowing them to learn from each other. In- and cross-country research and evidence generated through the programme also enables decision makers to assess what has worked in other programme countries and consider applying a particular strategy locally as relevant.

When it comes to the sustainability of the project, the programme has secured political commitment from the Ministries of Education and Health, which is key to ensuring that CSE is institutionalized and budgeted for while also avoiding dependency on external assistance. UNESCO played a critical role in advocating for the endorsement by governments of the Eastern and Southern Africa Ministerial Commitment, which has proven crucial in advancing programme implementation. Furthermore, the incorporation of specific indicators on the delivery of CSE into education management information systems will ensure that data continues to be collected annually and used for planning purposes. Sustainability is further ensured by building the capacity of young people and communities, which ensures long-term support for comprehensive sexuality education.