Youth Action Movement Eswatini

On this video we look at Young People, Education and Crime, Gender based violence & Substance Abuse. Meet Sandy a social worker from Phumelela Projects who works with children with the law. - "Not that we don't have dreams as young people. We do have dreams but we are discouraged by the poor access to youth programme funds. The responses are not welcoming; they willl say we need some capital before we can even be considered for additional funding and we do not have this. So we will go to crime." - Young person, aged 21  Criminal involvement and low educational attainment among young people are two social problems with common roots and overlapping features. Not much is known about how these two problems are interrelated. Criminal involvement may causally influence educational attainment, and vice versa. At the same time, criminal involvement and educational attainment outcomes can both be driven by multiple, potentially overlapping, observed and unobserved factors, su

Hello Yammies. Meet Mfundo Hlatjwako, a flas volunteer and community outreach mentor for young men and boys. He takes us deep into Gender Based Violence from what causes men to be violent and we talk about Violence against men. Watch the video for more.

AFRICAN CITIZENS INITIATIVE (ACI) The Family Life Association of Swaziland (FLAS) has launched the African Citizens Initiative (ACI) in the country to mobilise the extensive network of volunteers, corporate partners, friends and staff for resource mobilisation purposes. The ACI is one of the many initiatives undertaken by FLAS and IPPFAR to respond in the changing donor architecture and reduction in core funding as traditional donors shift their focus to other global priorities. The African Citizens Initiative will then create and support a pooled fund to eventually replace the reductions in core funding that member Associations are experiencing. What is the African Citizens Initiative? The African Citizens Initiative (ACI) is an innovative regional approach which seeks to use the extensive network of FLAS volunteers, friends, partners and staff for resource mobilisation purposes through making pledges of a fixed amount of money over certain period of time. This is a Peer to Pee

Sexual Rights Are Human Rights! The Family Life Association of Swaziland (FLAS) took a paradigm and strategic shift in 1999 after the IPPF conference to focus on young people and integrate Sexual and Reproductive and Health Rights programing. The focus has brought about a lot of controversy amongst the conservative and religious sector especially when SRHR is used in conjunction with young people. Hence the objective of today’s article is to explain what are Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights as well as the essence of providing comprehensive SRHR services and information to young people in Eswatini. Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) encompasses all of the rights and issues surrounding a person’s Sexual and Reproductive life. These rights are closely linked with other internationally recognised human rights, such as the right to privacy, the right to education and information, the right to equality and freedom from violence and all forms of discrimination, t

As 28th September is commemorated globally, SAfAIDS recognises past and current global, regional and local efforts advocating adolescent girls and women’s access to safe abortion. SAfAIDS however notes with great concern the increasing retrogressive and punitive legislative frameworks and policies denying women’s access to safe abortion and freedom of choice, criminalising abortion, and limiting access to comprehensive reproductive rights and health, contributing to high rates of morbidity and mortality, particularly in developing countries. Additionally, the Mexico City Policy (Global Gag Rule) reinstated in 2017 only served to worsen the plight of adolescent girls and women - through denied full bodily autonomy and agency, and restricted access to comprehensive reproductive health services, including safe abortion. It is against this background that SAfAIDS and its partners in SADC are buttressing efforts to promote adolescent girls and women’s access to comprehensive s

It's All About Contraceptives It is quite exciting to note that the Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Act of 2018 have finally received Royal Assent from His Majesty King Mswati III and is now law in the Kingdom of Eswatini. I strongly believe that the existence of the SODV Act of 2018 will provide a protective environment for the marginalised and vulnerable groups of society, restore peace in different family settings and make courts accessible for victims of Sexual and Gender Based Violence. The coming into law of the SODV Act of 2018 will create an environment in Eswatini where Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights are protected, supported and respected.  True to the words of an African giant, Ngugi Wa Thiongo, “There is no night so long that it does not end with dawn’’. Indeed, the SODV Act of 2018 presents a new dawn in the struggle to champion access to quality and non-discriminatory SRHR information and services in Eswatini. Today’s article will focus on the d