By Stefania Giannini, Assistant Director-General for Education
The release of The journey towards comprehensive sexuality education: global status report is a reminder of the urgent need for life-changing and potentially life-saving education about young people’s health and rights.
No girl should ever go through the experience of menstruation for the first time without a full understanding of what is happening to her. No young person should have to live in fear of going to school because they are the victim of violence or bullying at school and don’t know where to turn for help. No young woman should be deprived of her right to education because she falls pregnant.
Yet this is precisely what is happening.
Anesu Mandenge, a 23-year-old student of social work in Zimbabwe, told UNESCO that her transition from primary to secondary school was tense. “I was very insecure about menstruation. I often thought twice about whether I should go to school or not. I experienced a lot of fear and anxiety, as there was nobody there to explain what was going on or how to manage,” she said. Currently at University, Ms Mandenge said there is no access to sexuality education or services - “The university clinic does not provide students with contraceptives and this has resulted in many risky abortions being done on campus. There is really a need to introduce and prioritize the delivery of comprehensive sexuality education, even in higher education institutions.”
In Mexico, Rubén Ávila, 26 from Sin control parental and SheDecides, said growing up as an
We can’t afford to stand by and watch as children and young people miss classes, or drop out of school
The new global status report reveals that more and more countries
Naura Nabila Haryanto, 26 from Rutgers WPF in Indonesia told UNESCO that she had witnessed life-changing stories of how comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) impacted the health-seeking behaviour and well-being of young people.
“One teacher in one of the most remote areas in Indonesia, West Nusa Tenggara, said that after she facilitated CSE, the number of child marriage cases in her school decreased from 6 cases to 1 case per year,” she said. “In another part of the country, a boy revealed that he needed to understand himself better to build a healthy relationship with another person. Imagine these kinds of thoughts among all children. Through comprehensive sexuality education, we could drastically reduce rates of gender-based violence.”
Because so many countries have been making progress on sexuality education, each in their own way, it can be challenging to get a clear sense of where we stand globally. It is for this reason that UNESCO came together with UNAIDS, UNFPA, UNICEF, UN Women and WHO, to develop this landmark new report, and better understand the status of sexuality education around the world.
While it is clear that some progress has been made, we still have a long way to go on our journey. 85 per cent of 115 countries surveyed report that they have policies, laws or legal frameworks related to sexuality education, but it is not always reflected in classroom implementation. Around 4 in 5 countries said relevant sexuality education content and topics are covered in their national curriculum, yet evidence also reveals that key topics such as puberty, relationships, consent or even sex are being missed, or taught too late. Finally, while all countries acknowledge the importance of teacher training and report quality training initiatives, smaller studies reveal that teachers lack the confidence and skills to teach sexuality education.
Continued efforts to maintain a strong policy backing for CSE are needed. Commitment through policy needs to be backed up by dedicated budgets, alongside continued efforts to increase coverage. This will only be a worthwhile investment when attention is paid to the quality of delivery, which will be achieved through continued curriculum reform and significant investments in teacher training and support.
Adolescents and youth, the very people we are trying to reach, have revealed that much more needs to be done. In a recent UNFPA-led survey in the Asia-Pacific region, less than one in three young people believed that their school taught them about sexuality well.
As Amanda Filipsson, 23 from RFSU in Sweden said, this global status report reveals that while policy relating to sexuality education is a critical foundation, it is worth little without practical implementation and delivery. “Ensuring true access to quality comprehensive sexuality education in practice for all children and young people must be prioritized globally,” she said.
Rubén Ávila added, “Comprehensive sexuality education is a crucial life-changing element for all people, but especially for youth and adolescents. Our well-being, development and future depends upon it.”
As Anesu, Rubén, Naura, and Amanda, have made clear, many children and young people are growing up without the sexuality education they need. This is not just about sex, but about gender equality, puberty, relationships and sexual and reproductive health. It is about improving a young person’s self esteem, and imparting values of tolerance, mutual respect and non-violence in relationships.
I call upon governments, partners and education stakeholders to join us at UNESCO in supporting and empowering all children and young people through comprehensive sexuality education.
© UNESCO/Tafara Gowera