SERAC-Bangladesh held the 7th National Youth Family Planning Conference in Bangladesh
The 7th National Youth Family Planning Conference in Bangladesh concluded on Wednesday, October 12, at the Krishibid Institution in Dhaka. This two-day conference was successfully organised by SERAC-Bangladesh in collaboration with partners such as the Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office (FCDO), USAID, Bangladesh Youth Health Action Network (BYHAN), Coalition of Youth Organisations in Bangladesh (CYOB), JHPIEGO, IPAS Bangladesh, Marie Stopes Bangladesh, Pathfinder International, and UNFPA Bangladesh.
Since 2016, SERAC-Bangladesh has organised the Youth Family Planning Conference in partnership with the Department of Family Planning, the Health Ministry, and various local and international reproductive health organisations. The conference concluded with a commitment to organise the ‘8th National Youth Family Planning Conference 2023’ on a larger scale the following year.
Dr. Bushra Noor, Clinical Trainer, JHPIEGO Bangladesh, moderated the combined Human Centered Design Session between JHPIEGO and UNFPA Bangladesh on the second day of the event. The Country Lead of JHPIEGO Bangladesh, Dr. Abul Kalam Azad, was also present as a speaker. In addition, the main presenters were Dr. Setara Rahman, Technical Officer (Family Planning) of UNFPA Bangladesh, Md. Azad Rahman, and Ninad Afrin Zohora, Project Officer of JHPIEGO.
In a networking session with volunteers, they discussed various opportunities to connect with youth-centric organisations in order to increase youth involvement and youth leadership. Farhana Jasmin Hasan, Senior Technical Advisor-SGBV at Ipas Bangladesh, led the session on Youth and Comprehensive Sexuality Education.
According to the Executive Director of SERAC-Bangladesh, SM Saikat, who led a capacity building workshop on Advocacy and Strategic Communication for Change; information exchange is not always effective in communication. Self-communication is the priority issue for effective communication, and beyond that, there are various principles and rules to follow that play an important role in efficient communication and are highlighted throughout the workshop.
The closing session, Ticking Clock: Momentum for Youth Access, was moderated by Tasnia Ahmed, Program Manager of SERAC-Bangladesh, and featured special guests and speakers such as Dr. Halida Hanum Akhter, Senior Associate of the Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health; Mr. Kishwar Imdad, Country Director of Marie Stopes Bangladesh, and Dr. Nurun Nahar Begum, Line Director, Clinical Contraception Services Delivery (Mohammadpur).
This year’s conference will emphasise creativity by involving young people to make a positive impact in SRH programs. The two-day conference included plenary sessions, parallel sessions, training and networking for youth, and skill-building workshops in a hybrid format.