Young people with disabilities have the same sexual and reproductive health needs and rights as their peers without disabilities. However, evidence in eastern and southern Africa shows that, compared to their peers, they are more vulnerable to HIV, unintended pregnancies, sexual violence and lack equal access to health care and information about their sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR). Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) is an important factor for young people with disabilities and enables them to claim their sexual and reproductive health and rights. Yet educators for these learners in and out of schools often lack the skills, confidence, methods, and resources to provide CSE in accessible formats. Additionally, negative perceptions linked to the sexuality of young people with disabilities drive a risk-protection approach, that favours abstinence and no sex messages instead of comprehensive information about the body, relationships, safer sexual practice, rights and rights protection. Breaking the Silence (BtS) aims to improve the SRHR in young people with disabilities through making CSE accessible to these young people both in and out of school. The Leaving no One Behind project utilized the BtS approaches (pillars: CSE, research, and policy) and supported the further testing and development of the BtS approach to CSE. The study presented here aimed to understand the feasibility, barriers and facilitators of implementing the BtS approach to CSE during the COVID-19 epidemic in two South African special schools.
2021
67 p.
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IIEP