EPI-WIN Youth Newsletter

Youth Spotlight by Leshan Kereto

Leshan is President of the International Federation of Physician Assistants and Clinical Officers (IFPACS) and Chairperson of the United Nations Populations Fund  (UNFPA) Youth Advisory Panel. In May 2021, he was nominated and awarded by President Uhuru Kenyatta for outstanding efforts to end female genital mutilation in Kenya. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted the world in several ways. One of the most significant negative impacts has been on sexual and reproductive health, with several countries in Africa reporting a rise in teenage pregnancies and early marriages.

Economic constraints have led to an increase in poverty levels and in many settings, families have struggled to meet basic needs such as adequate personal hygiene products for girls. This has led to an increase in transactional sex.  According to statistics released by the Ministry of Health of Kenya, more than 328,000 teenage girls fell pregnant in the first year of COVID-19 pandemic. 

The ongoing emergence of variants has shown that the recovery of the world from the pandemic depends on public health and social measures and access to life-saving tools like the vaccines. However, the distribution of vaccines is inequitable. Globally, 8 billion doses have been administered, while 90 per cent of the African population still needs a vaccine.

Young people who are main users and consumers of social and mainstream media must desist from sharing wrong information about the vaccine and rally everyone to get vaccinated. It is also important for young people to advocate for fairness and accountability in the procurement and administration of the vaccines. 

By leveraging the voice of youth, organizations like the United Nations Populations Fund (UNFPA) have launched successful campaigns addressing sexual and reproductive health rights for women’s and girls. The UNFPA Kenya country office works with the UNFPA Youth Advisory Panel to give youth an opportunity to learn and contribute to policies and programmes on issues affecting them and ensure these reflect their needs.

Vaccine equity campaigns could employ a similar mechanism, empowering youth to take a front seat in championing the world’s recovery. This can be done by partnering with international and national students’ organizations to campaign for access to vaccines for all countries. The International Federation of Physician Assistant/Physician Associate and Clinical Officer/Clinical Associate/Comparable Students’ Association (IFPACS) is an example of one of many powerful student’s bodies to partner with.

As youth, we have shown that our collective voices have the power to address global issues. A global pandemic will never end when only certain countries vaccinate their populations.We must all have equal access to vaccines for the world to recover fully, and that is why we strongly advocate for vaccine equity.

Disclaimer: The EPI-WIN Youth newsletter highlights youth perpsectives and initiatives. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the World Health Organization.