Start Date: Mar/2014
End date: Dec/2015
550 volunteers
The project "Actívate Joven Mujer" Phase I and Phase II was implemented in four municipalities in southern Petén (San Luis, Poptún, Dolores and El Chal) during 2014 and 2015. In these municipalities 67% of the total population consists of young people, most of them living in rural Maya Q'eqchí communities and in conditions of poverty and extreme poverty.
The project promoted citizen participation and strengthened the knowledge of young women in Petén about their sexual and reproductive rights in order to prevent early pregnancies.
To achieve the objective, three components were developed, the first focused on political advocacy through the development of 60 broadcasts of the bilingual Spanish-Maya Q'eqchí radio program "Actívate Joven Mujer" (30 broadcasts per year). The program was directed to the general population in their own language, advocating for the eradication of inequalities experienced by girls and women, and was broadcast by Radio U'tan Kaj "La Voz del Pueblo".
This component also included the development of two Municipal Youth Forums with mayoral candidates "+ Facts - Promises", which were held to promote the democratic participation of young women and to empower them in the government plans of the mayoral candidates of the municipality of Poptún, Petén.
The second component addressed capacity building through the development of five Feminist Camps "Feminist Leadership as a Tool for the Prevention of Early Pregnancy".
The 50 young Maya Q'eqchí and Ladina volunteer leaders of the AMA Association, from the municipalities of San Luis, Poptún, Dolores and El Chal, Petén, participated in these camps to strengthen their leadership skills and the importance of access to and knowledge of sexual and reproductive health, violence prevention, interculturalism, and democratic participation.
After the camps, the volunteers transferred the knowledge learned to 500 adolescents from their community of origin, as each one replicated it with 10 adolescents, which they did through field work replicas, which they did in the native Maya Q'eqchí language in the case of the indigenous women.
The third component focused on the importance of raising awareness among adolescents and young people about responsible sexuality with the active participation of the different institutions and organizations present in Southern Petén.
For this reason, three Youth Festivals "Open Windows for Youth" focused on the prevention of early pregnancies and consisted of an intensive direct approach with young people from middle and high schools in urban areas in three municipalities in southern Petén (San Luis, Poptún and Dolores).
The festivals were held in the social hall of each municipality, where each participating organization set up two meters of wall, a table, and two plastic chairs, where they placed demonstration areas with information related to the project and institutional themes, such as tri-folds, photographs, magazines, and an educational message to the youth about the importance of preventing early pregnancies and the participation of women.
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The project "Actívate Joven Mujer" Phase I and Phase II was implemented in four municipalities in southern Petén (San Luis, Poptún, Dolores and El Chal) during 2014 and 2015. This project aimed to promote citizen participation and strengthen the knowledge of young women in Petén about their sexual and reproductive rights in order to prevent early pregnancies.
To achieve the objective, the following activities were implemented:
A1. 60 broadcasts of the bilingual Spanish-Maya Q'eqchí radio program "Actívate Joven Mujer".
During the two phases of the project (30 per phase), 60 broadcasts were made of the bilingual Spanish-Maya Q'eqchí radio program "Actívate Joven Mujer" to inform, sensitize and educate young women about the importance of responsible sexuality, active participation in forums for dialogue and democratic participation, prevention of violence and gender equality, to promote the prevention of pregnancies in girls, adolescents and young women.
The program is broadcast in bilingual Spanish-Maya Q'eqchí. This program is aimed especially at young indigenous women in rural communities, with poverty rates, difficult access, and where the main or only means of communication is the radio.
The program was broadcast as an open forum by the community radio station U'tan Kaj 106.9 FM, which belongs to the Apostolic Vicariate of Petén and has coverage in indigenous and mestizo communities in the departments of Petén, Izabal, Alta and Baja Verapaz, Quiche, and Huehuetenango, representing more than 1 million listeners and an audience of 180,000 people, according to its audience survey.
A2. Two Municipal Youth Forums with Mayoral Candidates "+ Facts - Promises"
Two Municipal Youth Forums with Mayoral Candidates "+ Facts - Promises" were held with candidates for mayor of the municipality of Poptún, Petén, so that young women could learn about municipal development plans to address the problems faced by Poptún women.
The first forum was attended by all the candidates, who presented their plans for the municipal government to more than 1,000 young women, representatives of women's organizations, and political parties.
At the end of the forum, all candidates signed a public commitment on the implementation of their plan upon winning the elections and also a list of demands proposed by AMA Association, Mujeres Ixquik Association, Global Humanitaria, Adecop Itzam, and other civil organizations.
The second forum was attended by the mayor-elect and his honorable municipal corporation, who ratified the commitments made at the first forum and pledged to hold an open town hall meeting to report on the progress made during his first year in office.
A3. Five Feminist Camps "Feminist Leadership as a Tool for the Prevention of Early Pregnancy".
The second component of the project involved capacity building through the development of five Feminist Camps "Feminist Leadership as a Tool for the Prevention of Early Pregnancy" (three camps in the first year and two in the second year).
50 young Maya Q'eqchí and Mestiza volunteer leaders of the AMA Association, between 14 and 29 years of age, from the municipalities of San Luis, Poptún, Dolores, and El Chal, Petén, participated in the camps.
The camps focused on leadership, democratic participation, gender equality, responsible sexuality, and prevention of sexual violence, and were developed using the inductive-deductive methodology of "learning by doing" and content multiplication.
After the camps, the volunteers transferred the knowledge learned to 500 adolescents from their community of origin, as each one replicated it with 10 adolescents, which they did through field work replicas, which they did in the native Maya Q'eqchí language in the case of the indigenous women.
A4. Three Youth Festivals "Open Windows for Youth".
In order to raise awareness among adolescent girls and young women about responsible sexuality and gender equality, three Youth Festivals "Open Windows for Youth" focused on the prevention of pregnancies among girls and adolescents.
The festivals were attended by 6,000 adolescents and young people from elementary and middle schools in the municipalities of San Luis, Poptún and Dolores, Petén, and various institutions and organizations with a presence in southern Petén.
The participating institutions provided information to adolescents and young people at a stand on their institutional work and the importance of preventing pregnancies in girls and adolescents, learning about responsible sexuality, preventing sexual violence, sexually transmitted infections including HIV/AIDS and gender equality.
Participating institutions include: Public Health Area Directorate, National Sexual and Reproductive Health Program, Health Districts, TAN UXIL Association, Office of the Defence of Indigenous Women, Municipal Women's Offices, Global Humanitaria, Office of the Human Rights Ombudsman , APROFAM, Secretariat against violence, exploitation and human trafficking, CONAP, SEGEPLAN, among others.
In 2014, the department of Petén had the highest rate of pregnancies in girls and adolescents between 10 and 14 years of age, with 756 pregnancies.
During 2015, there was a 12% decrease in pregnancies in girls and adolescents between 10 and 14 years of age in the municipalities of Southern Petén. This is according to the sexual and reproductive health situation room of the South East Petén Health Area.
In 2015, no maternal deaths in adolescents were recorded in the municipalities of Southern Petén. This according to the sexual and reproductive health situation room of the South East Petén Health Area.