Soul Beat Africa

• * LESOTHO - SRHR radio campaign and linking SRHR to HIV...
• * MALAWI - TV talk show and a girls' rights project...
• * EAST AND SOUTHERN AFRICA REGIONAL REPORTS ON SRHR AND YOUTH...
• * MOZAMBIQUE - youth multimedia project and an sms campaign...
• * NAMIBIA - youth campaign and research on sexuality and tradition...
• * GUIDES, TOOLS and MULTIMEDIA ON SRHR...
• * SWAZILAND - youth TV show and dual protection for sexworkers report...
• * ZAMBIA - girl empowerment project and SBCC and family planning report...
• * ZIMBABWE - SRHR and youth and mobile population campaigns...

• The Soul Beat 233 - Promoting Healthy Border and Migrant Populations
• The Soul Beat 228 - Sex Worker Health and Rights
• The Soul Beat 221 - Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights of Youth in Africa

• 1. Wize Up Radio Programme in LesothoPart of the activities of the Soul City Regional Programme on Sexual and Reproductive Health, this 26-episode 15-minute radio talk show was designed to reach young people in Lesotho with positive information and messages on their SRHR. Initiated by Phela Health and Development Communications in Lesotho, the format of the talk show included a presenter, expert guests, and personal stories related to a variety of SRHR issues.
  
• 2. Formative Qualitative Audience Research Report: Youth and Sexuality in Lesotho [May, 2010]Published by Phela Health and Development Communications, this report shares findings from a formative qualitative audience research study that was conducted to better understand youth sexuality in order to inform the development and production of multi-media materials for youth.
  
• 3. Linking SRHR and HIV in Southern Africa ProjectRunning from 2011 to 2015, this project is working in seven Southern African countries (Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia, Swaziland, Zambia, and Zimbabwe) to support country partners to overcome barriers to strengthening linkages between SRHR and HIV policies, programmes, and services.
  

• 4. Wize Up Television Talk Show in MalawiPart of the activities of the Soul City Regional Programme on Sexual and Reproductive Health, the Wize Up Television Talk Show in Malawi was an urban-based youth television talk show, supported by social media and a radio programme. Running from February 2014 to May 2014 and produced by Pakachere Health and Development Communication, the talk show was designed to communicate information and encourage discussion around young people’s sexual and reproductive health.
  
• 5. Young People's Views and Perceptions Regarding Female Condoms: A Qualitative Research Study [July, 2013]This report shares findings of a qualitative study conducted by Pakachere Institute for Health and Development Communication to explore views regarding condom use among young Malawian girls and boys aged 15 to 24. Conducted in semi-urban communities of Blantyre, the study findings will be used to design and develop tools for teaching young girls and boys about the female condom.
  
• 6. We Have Rights Too! Project - MalawiRunning from 2012 to 2014, We Have Rights Too! is working to ensure that the SRHR of women and girls living with HIV and AIDS are respected, protected, and upheld, within six Traditional Authorities (TA) within Blantyre and Nkhotakota districts in Malawi. This will include raising awareness on SRHR and systems for redress, training and supporting community SRHR promoters and peer educators, and advocating on issues affecting the SRHR of women living with HIV (WLHIV), including access to and quality of SRH services. The project is a collaboration between World University Services Canada (WUSC), Women for Fair Development (WOFAD), and Coalition of Women Living with HIV and AIDS (COWLHA).
  

• Mapping HIV Services and Policies for Adolescents: A Survey of 10 Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa [Published by AIDSTAR-One - December, 2013]
  
  
• Young People Today, Time to Act Now [Published by United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) - 2013]
  Looks at the education and sexual reproductive health status of adolescents and young people in Eastern and Southern Africa.
  
  
• Sexuality Education: A Ten-country Review of School Curricula in East and Southern Africa [Published by UNESCO and United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), 2012]
  
  
  

• 7. Tue Cena ProjectLed by the Soul City Regional partner in Mozambique - N'weti Health Communication - the Tua Cena campaign, which was initiated in March 2012, works to disseminate SRHR information among youth in order to achieve behaviour change that will lead to healthier choices. The project uses television, radio, and print, and encourages interaction and dialogue through facebook and SMS.
  
• 8. Draft Declaration from the International Conference on "Exchanging Experiences in Monitoring and Advocacy of Quality and Access to Sexual and Reproductive Health, Nutrition, and HIV and AIDS Services"N'weti Health Communication in partnership with Mechanism for Civil Society Support (MASC) Mozambique hosted an international conference which aimed to enliven dialogue and reflection between the government, partners, and national and international civil society organisations around existing public policies in the area of health (including sexual health), nutrition, and HIV/AIDS. The emerging declaraton stresses, among other things, the fact that sexual and reproductive health, nutrition, and HIV and AIDS should be seen as points on a continuum and as issues that require a cross cutting and integrated approach to planning and implementation.
  
• 9. mCenas! ProjectLaunched in September 2013, mCenas! (which means "Mobile Scenes" in Portuguese) is a text message education campaign that provides contraceptive information to youth in Mozambique. It seeks to identify and address myths and misconceptions related to family planning among the youth through stories and short message service (SMS) messages. The programme is implemented by Pathfinder International in Maputo and Inhambane provinces.
  

• 10. Wize Up Campaign - NamibiaWize Up is a youth campaign in Namibia that seeks to increase young people's knowledge around SRH as well as their access to services, thereby reducing early pregnancy, unsafe abortions, and increasing use of condoms as a dual protection for both HIV and pregnancy prevention. Led by Desert Soul Health and Development Communication and implemented with a range of partners, the campaign activities include a musical performance, the production and distribution of booklets, a radio talk show, and theatre.
  
• 11. Expanding Reproductive Rights Knowledge and Advocacy with HIV-positive Women and their Allies in Namibia - An Action-Oriented Initiative [2011]By Maria de Bruyn and Jennifer Gatsi MalletThis report, published by Ipas, looks at a Namibian project that was designed to increase awareness about gender and reproductive rights among members of the International Community of Women Living with HIV (ICW) and youth in order for them to advocate on these issues, particularly with regard to unwanted pregnancies, emergency contraception, and access to legalised abortion.
  
• 12. Beliefs and Attitudes toward Gender, Sexuality, and Traditions amongst Namibian Youth [2010]By Suzanne LaFontThis report, published by the Ombetja Yehinga Organisation and Legal Assistance Centre, discusses the findings of research conducted in Namibia with youth regarding their attitudes toward gender, sexuality, and traditional practices. The research was conducted to provide information to improve educational and social programmes around HIV prevention, gender equality, and sexual rights, as well as provide data to policymakers, organisations, and scholars
  

• 13. Wize Up TV Talk Show in SwazilandBroadcasting from January 2014, this 13-episode television talk show aimed to reach young people in Swaziland with information related to SRHR, HIV and AIDS, and life skills, tackling issues such as condom use, inter-generational sex, multiple concurrent partnerships, and parent-child communication. Produced by Lusweti Institute for Health and Development Communication as part of the Soul City regional SRHR initiative, the aim of the talk show was to create awareness, promote self-efficacy, and shift attitudes and norms towards more healthy sexual behaviours, as well as advocate for increased access to SRHR for young people in the country.
  
• 14. Use of Dual Protection Among Female Sex Workers In Swaziland [2013]By Zandile Mnisi, Eileen A. Yam, Xolile Mabuza, Caitlin Kennedy, Deanna Kerrigan, Stefan Baral, and Amy TsuiThis research, published by Population Council, aims to offer a better understanding of sex workers' use of condoms and nonbarrier methods and highlights the need to "incorporate HIV prevention into family planning interventions, particularly among female sex workers who have children and non-commercial partners".
  
• 15. Rapid Assessment of Sexual and Reproductive Health and HIV Linkages: Swaziland [2011]This summary document highlights insights gained through an assessment process conducted in Swaziland to better understand the linkages between SRH and HIV/AIDS. The assessment was part of a multi-country initiative, conducted using an assessment tool developed in 2009 by the International Planned Parenthood Foundation, UNFPA, World Health Organisation, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, GNP+, the International Community of Women with HIV/AIDS, and Young Positives. This tool was created to support national assessments of the linkages between SRH and HIV at the policy, systems, and services levels and is being used within countries to determine priorities and shape national plans and frameworks for scaling up and intensifying linkages.
  

• 16. Situation Assessment of the HIV Response among Young People in Zambia [June, 2011]By Samuel Kalibala and Drosin MulengaThe main objective of this situational assessment, published by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and Population Council, is to "compile and synthesize existing recent information on HIV and young people together with the current AIDS response for young people in Zambia, including programmes, policies, and key partners, and to document gaps and challenges in the response."
  
• 17. Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (AGEP)Running from 2011 to 2017 and implemented by the Population Council together with local partners, the Adolescent Girls Empowerment (AGEP) Program is working with vulnerable adolescent girls in Zambia to help them avoid early marriage; sexually transmitted infections, including HIV; and unwanted pregnancy. Through weekly "safe spaces" meetings and mentorship, health care vouchers, and savings accounts the programme is designed to build social assets that will reduce vulnerability.
  
• 18. Social and Behavior Change Communication to Address Family Planning Uptake in an Integrated Program in Zambia [December, 2011]By Christina Wegs, Bamikale Feyisetan, Jane Alaii, Philimon Cheeba, and Florence MbeweThis report summarises the final evaluation findings of the effectiveness of an action research study by Care Zambia that explored the effects of two complementary sets of interventions to increase family planning use and address the underlying social norms that influence uptake, particularly among people living with HIV. The activities included the establishment of a family planning screening and referral system to improve access to family planning at a large rural health center, and a series of social and behaviour change (SBCC) communication strategies at the community level to increase demand for FP and reduce barriers to FP use.
  

• 19. Wize Up, Your Decision, Your Life Campaign - ZimbabweThis campaign in Zimbabwe used radio talk shows and community dialogues to address SRHR issues for urban and rural youth. As part of the campaign, 9 radio discussion shows were recorded and broadcast by local community radio stations. Topics discussed were service delivery, delaying sexual debut, and communication between parent/guardians and children around sexual issues. The campaign is being led by the Action Institute for Environment, Health and Development Communication (Action IEHDC) as part of the Soul City regional SRHR initiative.
  
• 20. Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights Campaign for Mobile Populations in ZimbabweAction IEHDC in Zimbabwe also launched a SRHR campaign focusing on mobile populations at two border posts - Beitbridge and Chirundu. The campaign messaging focuses on addressing SRHR issues to reduce HIV incidences among mobile populations, primarily long distance truck drivers, commercial sex workers, and young women. The campaign seeks to promote a reduction of multiple and concurrent sexual partnerships (MCP) and encourage correct and consistent condom use. As part of the campaign activities Action IEHDC has developed posters and a brochure for young women, sex workers, and commercial sex workers, and is conducting community dialogues and events.
  
• 21. One Touch Sexual and Reproductive Health CampaignThis campaign seeks to generate and disseminate information on sexual and reproductive health as well as empower young people to protect themselves from HIV by strengthening HIV knowledge and sexuality education in Zimbabwe. Using social media, mobile phones, and the internet, the project is working to disseminate information while also fostering dialogue. The project is a collaboration between Text to Change (TTC), the United National Education, Science, and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), and SAYWHAT (Students and Youth Working on Reproductive Health Action Team) in Zimbabwe.