When Ms. Ouiychai Thongmany first heard about the opportunity to volunteer with UNFPA, she was curious.

She was 22 years old, a third-year marketing student at the Vientiane–Hanoi Friendship School, and working part-time at a Café. Like many young people, she was trying to understand her future, manage pressure from social media, and find her place in the world. In 2025, when one of her teachers shared a call for youth volunteers, the topics caught her attention. She decided to join.

At the time, Ouiychai knew very little about sexual and reproductive health. She did not know much about contraception, protection, or how young people could prevent early and unintended pregnancy. These were important issues, but they felt unfamiliar and difficult to talk about.

Through volunteering, that began to change.

Ouiychai joined activities that placed young people at the centre of learning and advocacy. She helped facilitate a booth during a Girls’ Day event, attended about one week of sexuality education training, and performed in a drama about a pregnant woman facing violence at a hospital.

These experiences gave her more than information. They gave her confidence.

She learned about sexual protection, contraception methods and condom use. She learned about preventing early and unintended pregnancy. She learned about life skills, planning for the future, and how young people can seek help from health professionals when they need support. She also learned about different forms of violence and how to respond, including ways to care for mental health, release stress, meditate, and focus on personal priorities and the future.

For Ouiychai, the most meaningful part was not only understanding these topics for herself. It was realizing that she could now support others.

“I now feel confident enough to advise and support others,” she said. “I have already recommended condom use to female friends.”

This simple sentence shows the power of youth volunteering. When a young woman gains knowledge, that knowledge does not stop with her. It moves through friendships, conversations and trusted spaces. It reaches other young women who may be too shy to ask an adult. It reaches peers who may be searching online but unsure what information to believe. It helps turn silence into safer choices.

Ouiychai’s journey also shows why sexuality education must be practical, human and youth-friendly. Young people need more than messages telling them what not to do. They need safe spaces where they can ask questions without shame. They need honest information about their bodies, relationships, protection and services. They need to know where to go when they feel unsafe or overwhelmed.

From her own experience, Ouiychai believes women need safe, face-to-face spaces where they feel comfortable opening up. She also believes communities need more awareness about sexual health protection, so women and girls can make informed choices and avoid risks that could affect their health, education and future.

The topic that touched her most personally was mental health and life planning. She learned the importance of letting go, focusing on herself, setting priorities and thinking about the future. For a young person facing pressure from social media and public criticism, this was not just a lesson. It was a form of strength.

Ouiychai’s story is a reminder that young people are not only beneficiaries of programmes. They are messengers, advocates and changemakers.

With the right training, a young volunteer can become the friend who shares correct information.
The peer who encourages someone to seek help.
The voice that makes difficult topics easier to discuss.
The young woman who learns for herself, then helps others feel less alone.

As UNFPA marks 50 years of partnership with Lao PDR, stories like Ouiychai’s show what investing in young people can make possible. It can give them knowledge. It can build their confidence. It can help them protect themselves and support their peers. And it can create a new generation that speaks more openly about health, safety, dignity and choices.

For Ouiychai, volunteering started with curiosity.

It became confidence.
It became courage.
And now, it is becoming care for others.