Interagency Youth Working Group
The United Nations Population Fund is an international development agency that, among other things, promotes and protects the rights of young people. It envisions a world in which girls and boys have optimal opportunities to develop their full potential; to freely express themselves and have their views respected; and to live free of poverty, discrimination, and violence. Here is a sampling of the agency’s youth-related publications. More information is available on the “Supporting Adolescents and Youth” section of UNFPA’s Web site.
Training Materials and Toolkits
Empowering Young Women to Lead Change: A Training Manual (2007, PDF, 3.08 MB)
Intended for self-study by young women, this manual empowers users to prepare and lead training workshops. Facilitation tips and icebreakers are included, as well as modules on topics including violence against women, sexual and reproductive health, self-esteem, and HIV/AIDS.
Investing When it Counts: Generating the Evidence Base for Policies and Programmes for Very Young Adolescents (2006, PDF, 1.25 MB)
This guidance document and toolkit describes data-gathering approaches, tools, and methodologies for use with very young adolescents (ages 10-14). It is primarily intended for researchers seeking techniques that have been used, or are likely to be effective, in identifying vulnerable subgroups, conducting needs assessments, and evaluating program coverage.
Peer Education Toolkit (2006)
This group of resources is intended to help program managers and master trainers develop effective peer education programs. These five documents, linked below in PDF format, include field- and research-tested techniques and specific examples and can be adapted for a variety of local contexts:
Preventing HIV/AIDS among Adolescents through Integrated Communication Programming (2003, PDF, 618 KB)
Written for national program or project officers in youth HIV-prevention, this resource employs a series of checklists to guide readers through the planning, implementation, and evaluation of integrated communication programming. Advocacy, behavior change, and education are emphasized as key components of effective programs.
Reports
At The Crossroads: Accelerating Youth Access to HIV/AIDS Interventions (2004, PDF, 298 KB)
This advocacy document describes how young people remain at the center of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in terms of transmission, vulnerability, impact, and potential for change. It outlines young people’s specific needs (including access to youth-friendly information and services) and discusses factors required to effectively scale up efforts to help this population.
Ending Child Marriage: A Guide for Global Policy Action (2007, PDF, 257 KB)
Written for policy-makers, donors, and international agencies, this report describes the global impact of child marriage, the human rights obligation of governments to intervene, factors that promote and reinforce the practice, useful contact organizations, and programmatic and policy recommendations.
HIV Prevention for Girls and Young Women: Report Cards (2007)
Designed as an advocacy tool for distribution to key stakeholders, each nation's “report card” presents a summary of the state of HIV prevention for girls and young women and provides specific recommendations for future policy, programs, and funding. Each report draws on statistics, published data, and quotes to provide a detailed overview of national laws and policies, availability and accessibility of services, and human rights, participation, and advocacy.
Keeping the Promise: An Agenda for Action on Women and AIDS (2006, PDF, 1.93 MB)
This document calls for a “massive scaling up of AIDS responses for women and girls.” The booklet describes the current global situation regarding women, girls, and HIV/AIDS within the historical context of previous governmental attempts to address the issue. Specific recommendations for actions are discussed within broader mandates to secure women's rights, invest more money in AIDS programs that work for women, and strengthen women's participation in programs and policy development.
Preparing for the Introduction of HPV Vaccines: Policy and Programme Guidance for Countries (2006, PDF, 596 KB)
This document introduces stakeholders to the key issues surrounding efforts to introduce the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine to fight cervical cancer. Adolescent girls are the primary target for vaccination.
Preventing HIV/AIDS in Young People (2006)
More than 80 studies in developing countries were analyzed to create this systematic review of the most effective interventions to prevent HIV infection in young people. The document provides policy-makers, program managers, and researchers with evidence-based recommendations. Each intervention practice is classified as “Steady,” “Ready,” “GO!,” or “Do not go,” to indicate the certainty of the evidence regarding that practice. Interventions are grouped according to setting.
Preventing HIV/AIDS in Young People: The First Systematic Review of What Works to Prevent HIV Infection among Young People in Developing Countries: A Summary of the WHO Technical Report Series No 938 (2006, PDF, 460 KB)
This executive summary includes brief descriptions of the general characteristics of interventions graded “GO!,” or ready for use, and tables of recommendations, grouped by setting, for program development and for research.
Preventing HIV/AIDS in Young People : A Systematic Review of the Evidence from Developing Countries (2006)
This book contains the entire review, including the project rationale, a general discussion of young people and HIV infection, study methodology, detailed discussions of the interventions reviewed, and conclusions and recommendations.
State of World Population
These annual reports discuss global issues to help readers reflect upon successes and challenges in fulfilling the goals outlined in various international agreements. One of the reports that is especially relevant to young people is State of World Population 2003: Making 1 Billion Count: Investing in Adolescents' Health and Rights (2003, PDF, 4.03 MB). This report focuses entirely on young people and the programs intended to help them. It incorporates an emphasis on adolescent reproductive health with other issues of concern to young people.
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