AFRO-NETS> USAID Award to FHI Promotes Youth Reproductive Health

[David Hock <DHock@fhi.org>]

USAID Award to FHI Promotes Youth Reproductive Health
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RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK -- The U.S. Agency for International Develop-
ment (USAID) has awarded Family Health International (FHI) US$ 85 
million to lead a five-year program to promote the reproductive 
health of youth in selected developing countries. The program begins 
immediately.

FHI will implement the program, called YouthNet, through a partner-
ship with CARE, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Emerging Markets, Margaret 
Sanger Center International and Research Triangle Institute.

"There are 1.7 billion youth worldwide, many of whom are at risk of 
infection with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), unplanned preg-
nancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs)," says JoAnn Lewis, 
MPH, FHI senior vice president for reproductive health. "The goals of 
this program are to increase community and political support for 
youth reproductive health; to improve knowledge, attitudes and skills 
related to healthy reproductive practices, including strategies to 
help young adults delay sexual activity; and to expand access to 
quality reproductive health products and services for youth."

Strategies to achieve the program's goals include:

* Designing interventions that recognize that youth have different 
  needs depending upon such factors as their age, sex, life stage and 
  culture.
* Providing practical tools to implement research and policy.
* Using technology to increase access to information.
* Monitoring and evaluating interventions to better understand how to 
  replicate and sustain successful efforts.

"We also believe that, for these initiatives to have an impact, youth 
must be full partners in the development, implementation, management 
and evaluation of strategies and programs," says Ms. Lewis. "We view 
youth as assets, not problems. By recognizing their strengths and re-
siliency, we can help them to build skills that they can apply to all 
areas of their lives."

To this end, youth will be involved in all aspects of the program. 
YouthNet will use global youth networks, such as the World Associa-
tion of Girl Guides Girl Scouts, as well as communications networks, 
such as MTV and SATELLIFE to share information and lessons with broad 
audiences.

YouthNet staff will be based in FHI's Arlington, VA, office. FHI's 
corporate offices in North Carolina will provide senior management 
and financial oversight for the program. Program partners will play 
the following roles: Atlanta-based CARE, with 50 years of experience 
coordinating and managing programs in over 60 countries, will garner 
community support for sustainable adolescent health programs. It will 
work with FHI to manage youth interventions at the country level. 
Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, based in Washington, DC, will be responsi-
ble for increasing private sector involvement in youth reproductive 
health. Margaret Sanger Center International in New York City, with 
three decades of experience assisting youth and reproductive health 
programs, will institutionalize reproductive health education in 
schools and through faith-based organizations. Research Triangle In-
stitute in Research Triangle Park will share its considerable experi-
ence in policy reform and gender issues.

USAID administers foreign aid, which includes efforts to deliver fam-
ily planning services, promote safe pregnancy and delivery, and inte-
grate reproductive health with other needs, such as the prevention of 
HIV/AIDS.

FHI is a research and technical assistance organization dedicated to 
improving reproductive health worldwide. It has 30 years of experi-
ence developing, managing and implementing complex programs in family 
planning, reproductive health, HIV/STIs, adolescent and maternal 
health, and gender issues with funding from, and in partnership with, 
USAID and its overseas missions. FHI has carried out more than 70 ac-
tivities, studies and projects focusing on youth.

The new award follows other recent awards to FHI. In 2000, the Na-
tional Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) selected 
FHI to manage an international center supporting research involving 
tropical and other infectious diseases in tropical regions. In 1999, 
NIAID awarded FHI a US$ 22 million, five-year contract to manage a 
network of research universities and institutions that are evaluating 
HIV prevention interventions in the United States and in developing 
countries. Also, in 1999, USAID awarded FHI an US$ 87 million, five-
year agreement to continue contraceptive research and related repro-
ductive health projects. Among FHI's other major programs is the Im-
plementing AIDS Prevention and Care (IMPACT) project based in Wash-
ington, also financed by USAID. In partnership with five other or-
ganizations, the five-year, $148 million IMPACT project works in more 
than 30 developing countries to prevent the spread of HIV and to pro-
vide care for those who are infected.

David Hock 
Senior Information Projects Coordinator 
Family Health International 
mailto:dhock@fhi.org

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