Stakeholders in sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR) advocacy are calling on the government and development partners to sustain and scale up such services.
Players in the sector raised the sentiments as the iHEARD project came to an end yesterday.
The six-year project worked to improve access to SRHR for adolescent girls and young women in Lilongwe, Dowa and Ntchisi.
The closing activity was marked by a knowledge-sharing event that brought together ministry officials, donors and civil society organisations in Lilongwe.
Chairperson for the iHEARD Youth Advisory Committee, Christina Bisalomu, said the initiative created safe spaces where young people could speak freely and see their ideas acted on.
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She called on the Ministry of Youth to ensure that youth-friendly SRHR services were available in all communities.
“While youth voices were well represented, there remains an opportunity to further deepen youth-led action and strengthen meaningful participation in decision-making,” Bisalomu said.
iHEARD Project Implementation Lead Thokozani Mwenyekondo said the project recorded notable achievements, including reductions in cases of teenage pregnancy and increased uptake of STI treatment.
She, however, acknowledged that gaps remained.
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“It is our hope that the Government of Malawi will take this up, and other interested development partners will also meet the gaps that we have identified along the way,” Mwenyekondo said.
Youth, Sports and Culture Minister Alfred Gangata said Malawi continued to face deep structural challenges around issues such as teenage pregnancy, school dropout and gender-based violence, urging players in all sectors to sustain the momentum built by the phased-out project.
“Young people are not just beneficiaries of development. They are agents of change. They have the ideas, the energy and the vision to shape the future of Malawi,” Gangata said.
The project was funded by Global Affairs Canada and implemented by CODE, Farm Radio International, Fawema and MSI Reproductive Choices, among other local partners.
