Working with Young People

By Danica Magtubo, Youth SRHR Officer, WGNRR

It’s hard to imagine that last year wearing face shields and face masks, observing physical distancing and home quarantine were not as commonplace as they are now. It felt like it was only yesterday when I conducted discussions on sexual and reproductive health and rights in the community and schools back in my province, where internet connection is a challenge and not everyone has access to social media. This year has been unexpected; not once in my life did I imagine that a global pandemic would force all of us to stay home for months. It was challenging adjusting to the demands of the COVID-19 pandemic, and yet we are still expecting long term impact brought about by this global health challenge, even as complications in the economic and public health are already evident.

The first few months felt like we were all in limbo. No one knew what exactly was happening, but we witnessed how governments around the world reacted to the pandemic by imposing restrictions on mobility to contain the virus. Despite efforts to stop the spread of the virus, inequalities still persisted, a lot of people lost their jobs, were denied access to basic health services and their rights violated. It felt frustrating seeing these unfold. We saw how young people are also affected; there was an increase in online sexual exploitation during lockdown period, some have experienced physical, verbal and sexual abuse at home, while others suffered from psychological distress. Notably, UN highlighted that young people around the world are among the most affected populations as mobility restrictions provide considerable barriers between them and their safe spaces. In one of Young Advocates for SRHR (YAS) Facebook posts regarding a survey on how young people ages between 15 to 29 years old cope through the pandemic, a young person expressed how frustrated he was while in home quarantine because he was forced to stay with his family he does not get along with. With school closures not only did these interrupt his learning but also his access to his safe space. In addition, other young people recounted the challenge of accessing basic needs like food, psychosocial services and services pertaining to their sexual and reproductive health – this is as simple as having access to menstrual health items – while at home. This showed that young people need more than just prevention strategies against COVID-19.

In reality and prior to the pandemic, information on sexual and reproductive health are not in place especially in schools. I felt old realizing that I was only 18 years old back in 2012 when I was in front of the Congress mobilizing young people in support for the passage of the Reproductive Health bill.      Eight years since its passage into law, I feel frustrated because we’ve been talking about the need for an age- and development-appropriate comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) which is one of the components of the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health law . This  landmark legislation that fell short of its implementation goals. With the pandemic, it has again delayed and limited young people’s access to CSE.

As among the advocates for sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), our role is crucial during these trying times as we need to fill the gaps in access to information and services on SRHR of young people. Getting angry at what is happening during the pandemic does not help our mental health; rather it is by recognizing that what we can do for now is to adapt and strategize especially to  ensure sexual and reproductive health and rights accessibility to young people. The pandemic allowed us to use the only platform that connects us to the rest of the young people in home quarantine which is the internet. As someone who has been online since high school, I mostly use the internet for googling stuff and sharing memes but this period in our lives has transformed us from advocates into social media managers!

Through the YAS Facebook page with around 500 followers in the first few months of the community quarantine,  despite the digital divide, we have noticed the increase in online engagement of young people on Facebook. We saw this as an opportunity to increase our audience reach and create online spaces to talk about SRHR during the pandemic. On May 28 International Day of Action for Women’s Health, YAS hosted the #YoungPeopleinQuarantine Challenge. Although young people are affected by the pandemic, they also play a critical role in advancing their SRHR, speaking about the challenges they face and mobilizing wider support for women and girls’ health. 

During the #YoungPeopleinQuarantine Challenge, online sessions on creative work and SRHR were conducted based on the young audience’s interest. They were engaged through learning sessions on photography, short stories and opinion articles, and SRHR question and answer with youth advocates. An online contest was also held to aid young people’s need for internet connectivity, by just submitting creative works on how they advocate for SRHR, many young people won mobile credits and cash prizes, plus their creative work were featured in YAS Facebook page. Young participants during the #YoungPeopleinQuarantine Challenge were able to utilize their imagination and creativity, and learn about their SRHR at the same time. One of the winners in the contest expressed how the games and contests are fun and made their quarantine days productive, and “aside from utilizing SRHR resources, we also utilize our imagination and creativity while in quarantine”.  When schools open in August, September and October classes were shifted online.

To continue the engagement in creative learning and advocating for SRHR of young people, a three-week SRHR Online Bootcamp from July to August among fifteen young people from different parts of the Philippines were conducted. Since more young people are socializing online, we saw the importance of utilizing this opportunity to train new members of Young Advocates for SRHR (YAS). Although challenged with internet connectivity, the programme for the SRHR Online Bootcamp was able to provide young people with skills building on creative methods and SRHR.

What was also notable in the new cohort of YAS who joined was that many of them were also participants during the #YoungPeopleinQuarantine Challenge.  They wanted to continue learning about SRHR and become advocates by joining the organization. Most of them had no prior knowledge about SRHR topics but after the three weeks online bootcamp, they have demonstrated improved understanding of SRHR concepts and increased positive attitude towards SRHR. As someone who has been used to face-to-face discussions and peer education, the online platform has been challenging in terms of internet connectivity and the lack of physical interaction of the bootcamp participants, but as advocates, we learn how to adapt to the situation. Thankfully, even with these challenges, the bootcamp participants enjoyed interactive exercises. Stipends were provided as necessary subsidy because  we recognized that during this pandemic young people need to be provided with communications support so that they could speak out.

In a span of a few weeks, new members of YAS were able to lead their online advocacy work such as organizing a YAS Talks segment during the International Youth Day, and  in SRHR Explained where they talk about SRHR with fellow youth. YAS members also participated in the Telling Truer Stories Live Art Event where they create artworks based on live reading of abortion stories of women and girls.

One key lesson from this crisis is that as advocates we can still continue with our own ways in engaging young people online as long as they are supported, capacitated, and given the opportunity or spaces to voice out their ideas and concerns.

This article was first published in Pasya advocazine, stories, perspectives and practices on SRHR. Pasya is published through the SHE Project with the funding support of the Global Affairs Canada.