27 January 2022, Vientiane Capital - To strengthen the adolescent and youth-friendly services (AYFS), UNFPA provided 11 portable speakers and 12 sexual reproductive health outreach bags to Champasak province in December, Savannakhet province also received a set of sound systems and 50 loudspeakers from UNFPA. 

“These tools are essential for both mobile outreach and services at the health facilities. We use them to reach people with important information on sexual and reproductive health, including COVID-19, so that they can protect themselves and their families,” said Dr. Viengsy Supakdy, Director of Champasak Provincial Health Department.

Access to healthcare services amid COVID-19 became more difficult, especially for adolescents and young people seeking sexual and reproductive health services, this was already a challenge before the pandemic. UNFPA and MOH supported AYFS program aims to respond to the needs of young people with a confidential and comfortable environment so that they can talk about their SRH freely without fear of judgment. 

During COVID-19, both provinces continued to provide information and services on SRH in the quarantine centers and treatment facilities, including villages across all districts. They conduct health education through mobile outreach in factories and villages. All adolescents and young people in or out-of-school and workers receive primary SRH such as counseling, contraceptive pills, injectables, and condoms through a mobile clinic.

Dr. Sengdao Sydalay, Head of the SVNK provincial health department, said that the equipment would facilitate the provincial AYFS amid COVID-19 especially for young workers at the quarantine centers. “our team also continues to provide information and essential health service on sexual and reproductive health for all adolescent and young people across 15 districts,” she added. 

Before the pandemic hit, the unmet need for family planning for unmarried adolescents aged 15-19 was as high as 75%. Since COVID-19 spikes, there is a decline in the uptake of new contraception users by 15%, according to the Ministry of Health’s data (2020), which could lead to an increase in unplanned pregnancies, child marriages, and unsafe abortions. 

“We let youth down if essential services are interrupted, interrupted services lead to increase of unplanned pregnancy, child marriage, unsafe abortion and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Maintaining regular SRH services especially for adolescents and young people is critical alongside efforts to stem the spread of the virus, not doing so will hamper long term socio economic recovery” said Ms. Mariam A. Khan, UNFPA Representative to Lao PDR.

Alon with the mobile outreach and mobile clinics, hotline numbers - 1361 (for female) and 137 (for male) are operated by the Vientiane Youth Clinic to provide SRH counseling for adolescents and young people. UNFPA collaborates with the government and partners such as the Luxembourg Government and the Swiss Development Cooperation (SDC) within UN joint programmes to ensure SRH information and services are accessible for all adolescents and youth. 

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UNFPA, the UN's sexual and reproductive health agency, works in over 150 countries including Lao PDR, to achieve zero maternal deaths, zero unmet need for family planning and zero gender-based.

For more information please contact:

Ms. Soukphansa Saysamone

SRH Program Associate, UNFPA Laos

Email: saysamone@unfpa.org

Ms. Vanly Lorkuangming

Communications and Partnerships Analyst, UNFPA Laos

Email: lorkuangming@unfpa.org