At 16, Nicole is pregnant with her first child. She's dropped out of school. After she gives birth, she has a one in six chance of getting pregnant again before she turns 19. Without a degree, her options are severely limited. Nicole is just one of 200,000 Filipino teenagers who get pregnant every year. This project will provide education and services to 3,000 young girls in Palawan, Philippines, to give them a better chance to avoid Nicole's fate and stay in school.
One in five teenage girls in Palawan is either pregnant or has a child. With little to no access to health education and services, especially in remote areas, misconceptions about sex and pregnancy are widespread. 70% of young people, for instance, believe that jumping up and down prevents pregnancy. With a child to care for, girls are forced to drop out of school, limiting their economic opportunities. Early pregnancy also puts a young girl and her child's lives at risk.
Roots of Health conducts age-appropriate comprehensive sexuality education classes in Palawan schools to ensure that young people understand their bodies and health. So that girls like Nicole don't rely on jumping up and down to prevent pregnancy. ROH's highly trained professional staff provide free reproductive health counseling and services, including pregnancy testing, through its youth clinic. To protect the health of young moms, ROH also provides free prenatal vitamins and checkups.
By educating young people about their bodies and their health, along with providing access to services, this project will empower girls to avoid early unplanned pregnancy. Girls get better opportunities to stay in school, live healthy reproductive lives, and take charge of their bodies and their futures.
This project has provided additional documentation in a PDF file (projdoc.pdf).
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