Empowering Youth Heroes: Championing SRHR Access in Namayingo District.

Thursday, 4 May, 2023

Meet Nekesa Winfred, A Youth Hero Spearheading Sexual Reproductive Health Rights (SRHR) Access in Buhemba, Namayingo District

Meet Nekesa Winfred

My name is Nekesa Winfred. I am from Buhemba sub-county, Namayingo district. I work as a Y Hero with the Heroes for Gender Transformative Action programme.

As a Y Hero, I engage with youth aged 15–24, offering vital SRHR education. Under Programme Y we work with young people aged 15–24, providing knowledge and information through curriculum-based learning to enable them to make better choices regarding their health. We meet these young people in schools, in the community, and also at the health facility and hold sessions in age groups of 15–19 and 20-24.

Comprehensive SRHR Education Outreach

During the Programme Y sessions, we cover diverse topics such as family planning, self-respect, and substance abuse, delivered through school, community, and health facility sessions. Youths are also able to acquire the services they need.

As an individual, I have acquired life skills through the Heroes For Gender Transformative Action programme: I have developed life skills, bolstering my confidence to counsel my peers on SRHR matters at health facilities. Economic empowerment has also been a benefit, enabling me to invest in assets like livestock.

Ensuring Sustainable Impact.

We see sustainability in that we have come up with the Namayingo Youth Forum as programme Y and other groups to continue teaching young people about how they can stay safe, self-care concerning their bodies, their sexual reproductive health and rights and how they can contribute to creating an environment free from Sexual Gender Based Violence (SGBV)

Frame 1: Nekesa Winfred. Frame 2: Improving access to SRHR services and commodities: Winfred (R) hand holds a peer to the Health Facility. Frame 3: The Namayingo Youths Forum