Raymonde Rival, the Minister of Youth, Sports and Civic Action closed this August 11, 2023, with the support of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA - Haiti), the United Nations Development Program (UNDP - Haiti), the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) and the United Nations Coordination Office, two days of celebration of International Youth Day (August 12)

Minister Raymonde Rival said that she would work with the United Nations to advocate with international bodies to identify the sources of the problems and guide appropriate policies concerning young people.

The Minister, who relies on the strength and capacity of young people, recognizes the need to continue to supervise them in order to help them to get involved at all levels of society and to engage in the fight against the scourges that threaten us all. "Young people are a force for transformation at all levels" she underlined conclusively "They should be accompanied," the Minister concluded.

Ulrika Richardson, the UN Resident Coordinator in Haiti, invited young people to embody change. "There will be no solution in Haiti (among other political stability, social and economic peace) without the youth", she stressed.

Ulrika Richardson announced debates in the various departments of Haiti to gather the opinions of young people as part of the implementation of peace and security efforts. She praised the commitment and determination of young Haitians for change.

Philippe Serge Degernier, UNFPA Representative in Haiti, recalled the various contributions of UNFPA in Haiti concerning young people, particularly in the context of the revision of the normative documents of the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Civic Action. Among these documents, we can highlight the national youth policy document and the youth strategic plan.

With the Department of School Health of the Ministry, UNFPA supports health clubs in schools, together with the Foundation for Reproductive Health and Family Education (FOSREF), following the model of the Department of School Health of the Ministry of National Education with a view to integrating reproductive health. UNFPA builds the capacity of local youth organizations, including the Observatory of Haitian Youth (OJH), on reproductive health and has helped make maternities adolescent and youth-friendly through girl spaces in to facilitate dialogue between providers, especially midwives and adolescent girls on reproductive health.

Finally, UNFPA is working with UNESCO as part of the revision of the MENFP curriculum for the integration of a reproductive health component.

Statistics:

In Haiti, young people aged 15 to 24 represent 19% of the general population. People under 25 make up 51% of the general population. The median age of the population is 23 years old. Those under 18 represent 38% of the general population. A large proportion of the population is therefore young. It represents the present and the future.

HL/ HaitiLibre