Nigeria is the most populous country in sub-Saharan Africa, with a very young population; about half of the country’s population is between the ages of 10-19 and have several unmet sexual health needs with poor sexual health literacy, which require urgent action.
The Sexual Health Programme is a web-based programme of Jika Adolescent Hub whose goal is to promote access to comprehensive sexuality education and improve poor sexual health literacy across Nigeria and globally for young people by leveraging digital innovation and technology.
Education Associate of Jika Adolescent Hub, Mr Solomon Ijauka, reveals that the programme leverages digital tools to improve sexual and menstrual health literacy and promote healthy behaviours around relationships for young people and communities. He also highlights that the content is based on the World Health Organisation’s standards for comprehensive sexual health education, written and reviewed by medical professionals, and accessible by the general public in rural and urban settings.
Volunteers Associate, Mr Peter Akpan reiterates that educational resource covers a range of content delivered in laymen’s terms, devoid of technical jargon, and aims to empower young people with knowledge of their sexual and menstrual health, skills for managing relationships and discourage risky sexual behaviours globally.
The founder and Executive Director of Jika Adolescent Hub, Dr MaryJane Nweje, was recognised by UN Women Nigeria Youth Showcase as a Leading Youth Advancing Gender Equality & Women’s Empowerment (GEWE) through Technology and Innovation in Nigeria. The Showcase, which was held on the 23rd of March 2023 at the United Nations House Abuja, heard from donors as partners, including UN Women Country Representative Beatrice Eyong, Ambassadors of Finland, Mexico, Japan to Nigeria and representatives from NITDA, Microsoft, First Bank and several other national, international development and technology partners and donors. During the event, Dr MaryJane further highlighted that by promoting access to information to destigmatise sexual health in Nigeria and empowering girls to make informed choices, thereby improving health outcomes, The SHE Programme is playing a crucial role in advancing gender equality and women’s empowerment in several ways.
The SHE programme is also empowering young people with knowledge while also bridging the digital divide, as young girls and women can enhance their digital literacy skills while using the resource.
For more information, visit www.jikaadolescenthub.org
Contact: jikaadolescenthub@outlook.com
