Young people encouraged to use condoms

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One of the healthcare providers in Malawi Banja La Mtsogolo (BLM) has encouraged youths to access contraceptives to reverse the trend of unwanted pregnancies.

Speaking in an interview with Malawi24, Banja La Mtsogolo’s Organised Network for Health (ONSE) Chief of Party Vanessa Van Schoor said contraceptive methods such as Norplant, pills, injections and tubal ligation are being offered in the country’s health facilities and young people should access them.

BLM has encouraged youths to access contraceptives.(File)

She however noted that there’s still a need for the youths to practise abstinence.

BLM alongside its partners ONSE, FPAM and Village Reach are implementing a 5 year project in Dowa district called provision of family planning and contraception services.

The main objective is to encourage community leaders to be available in educating the youths the importance of contraceptive measures in the district.

Van Schoor said the project is being implemented in Dowa district in the areas of Traditional Authorities Chiwere, Chakhaza and Kayembe with FPAM in the other T/As of the district to ensure that there is no duplication of activities covering all the outreach areas in the district.

“The project will focus on family planning activities which gives people options to delay unwanted pregnancies and limit the number of children born,” she said.

She added that BLM, apart from offering contraceptive services, also offers sanitation, maternal and child health and Malaria prevention; ensuring that healthy community members lead in the development of their own areas and this will be done in collaboration with the Ministry of Health so that any activity done should be linked to health services.

In his remarks, National Initiative for Civic Education (Nice Trust) Dowa District Civic Education Officer Vincent Mbenjere asked BLM to distribute more condoms to Mponela Rural Hospital which will enable his organization to easily access them claiming that every time he goes to this facility, he hears of no funding for the condoms.

He expressed hope that BLM will reverse the trend so that many youths are reached out with condoms in the district.

On her part, Van Schoor said the Ministry of Health is the main supplier of condoms in the country’s health facilities adding that shortages of contraceptive supplies such as female condoms has also hit organisations providing them.

The 5 year provision of family and contraception services will be implemented in Dowa district to the tune of 1 million US Dollars.