By Rose Cross Mahorya
First Lady Gertrude Mutharika has called on health workers to treat young people seeking Sexual Reproductive Health Services and Rights (SRHSR) with dignity and respect, saying unfriendly treatment discourages youths from accessing essential health services.
Mutharika made the remarks in Mzuzu on Saturday during the launch of the Youth Dialogue on Sexual Reproductive Health Services and Rights and Youth Friendly Health Services, a project being implemented by the Organisation of African First Ladies for Development (OAFLAD).
Her remarks followed a dialogue session during the event in which some youths shared experiences of being treated harshly and subjected to inappropriate language by some health personnel while seeking services.
“Services are supposed to be delivered in a manner that will respect and dignify people seeking them, but if the youths are treated so harshly, how can we expect to reduce cases of teen pregnancies and HIV and AIDS?
“I was touched by the example given during the dialogue by one of the youths who witnessed a health worker saying ‘amene muli ndi zokandakanda bwerani mbali iyi’. If it were you, would you go? Youths need respect too. We have heard here that out of five youths, three of them have HIV. This is not a good representation,” said Mutharika.The First Lady said the youth dialogue initiative will be extended to other regions to help improve access to youth friendly health services and raise awareness on reproductive health rights.
She further encouraged young people to avoid risky behaviours and focus on their education, saying early pregnancies often come with serious health and social consequences.
“You are still young. I therefore urge you to concentrate on education because early pregnancies come with a lot of health complications,” she said.
Representative of youths in Mzuzu, Yasin Salim, appealed for increased investment in programmes that promote access to Sexual Reproductive Health Rights and Services among young people.
He said despite ongoing efforts by government and stakeholders, many youths still face stigma and different forms of abuse when attempting to access such services.
“While we know that government and other stakeholders are not silent on SRHR issues, there is still more to be done because youths still face various types of abuses including stigma in their efforts to access these services.
“It must also be known that access to SRHS is for all youths, not only some, hence we pray for continued investment in young mothers who dropped out of school due to early pregnancies,” said Salim.
Among the dignitaries present at the event were spouse to the Second Vice President Tadala Chihana, Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Alfred Gangata, and National Youth Council of Malawi Chief Executive Officer Rhoda Gadama Misomali.
