OPINION: Time To Create Comprehensive Plan To Address Young People's Sexual Health

As part of the Guardian’s “Young people’s sexual health matters” series, Doortje Braeken, senior adviser on adolescents and youth at the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), in an opinion piece reflects upon the recent London Summit on Family Planning, and says “the biggest hurdle is that many societies don’t recognize young people as sexual beings,” and “[o]ther challenges include policy, legal, economic, cultural, educational, service delivery and supply chain management,” as well as data collection. She says the community must “[d]evelop a comprehensive approach to young people’s mental and physical health and empowerment, recognize young people as sexual beings, provide comprehensive sexuality education for all …, train providers properly, and create easily accessible services.” She continues, “Perhaps it’s now time to create a comprehensive, commonly-agreed blueprint of components that are required to achieve the outcomes we all seek with regard to young people’s sexual and reproductive health, and again with components that can be phased in according to each community’s and nation’s need” (7/24).

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