Half the world’s population is young people under twenty-five years. In Jamaica,there are some  277,380 adolescents, 10 -14 years and some 458,854 youth age 15-24.Worldwide,there has been some progress in recognising, promoting and enabling adolescents and youth to access sexual reproductive health and rights information and services.More young people now have access to modern contraception and family planning services.
Nevertheless, despite these remarkable improvements, unintended pregnancy,
complications from too-early childbearing, unsafe abortion, HIV transmission and
gender-based violence are still high among adolescents and youth in Jamaica. The current situation, where despite young people’s realities they are being denied essential comprehensive information and services, is unacceptable. Adolescents and youth have a right to be healthy and live free from violence and coercion. Now more than ever, investing in the health, well-being and development of young people must be seen and treated as priority with great urgency. Policies and programmes must better support and enable young people to take control of their sexual and reproductive health and rights responsibly. For example:

• The age sexual initiation/debut for females age 15-17 is 14.4 and for females, 18-19 years, the average age is 15.8
• 36% of young women ages 15-19 are pregnant (2008).
• Approximately 40% of Jamaican women have given birth at least once before they reach the age of 20.
• Approximately 20.4 % of young women between the ages of 15-19 years old report having been forced to have sexual intercourse at some point during their life.
• Young people, 15 – 24 years old, who are HIV positive, have shown no significant change over the last decade 1.3% in 2004, 1.0% in 2009.
• The Knowledge Attitudes Perception and Behaviour 2012 shows that only some 38.5 % of adolescent respondents could adequately dispel or reject myths and provide correct around HIV/AIDS information.

JYAN's Call to Action:

We demand immediate action from the government adolescent and youth rights to sexual and reproductive health, to live free from violence and coercion, and to exercise their sexual and reproductive rights is upheld. JYAN calls for a clear post 2015 MDG plan of action for SRHR for youth Consider the following:

Youth Involvement: Hold more civil society consultations where individuals and groups, including youth-led organizations can come together, discuss issues and identify priorities to be translated into national policies and programmes. The participation and representation of young people in all relevant ministries such as Ministry ofEducation, Ministry of Youth and Culture and Ministry of Health as well as other decision making bodies on sexual and reproductive health issues should be increased and mechanisms be in place to ensure sustained youth participation. Finally, support youth delegations to various international conferences and high-level meetings focused on youth development and training especially in the area of sexual and reproductive health and rights.

Youth-friendly Services: Enact measures to ensure confidentiality in health care settings that uphold clients’ rights, including training for health care providers on youth-friendly services. Ensure that these services are nonjudgmental towards young people and that health workers face firm action when they discriminate against clients.

Legal and Socio-cultural Barriers: Develop a national policy for young people’s sexual and reproductive health and rights, including a workplace policy that goes beyond HIV/AIDS and provides a more holistic approach with guidelines to support the sexual and reproductive health and rights of young workers. Additionally, within existing national policies that affect youth, address young people’s sexual and reproductive health and rights

Youth Diversity: Recognise and respond accordingly to diversity within the youth
population. More specifically develop, implement and support tailored programming for most-at-risk youth, such as rural youth, adolescent girls, disenfranchised and socially excluded youth, gay, lesbian and transgender (LGBT) youth and youth with disabilities.

All adolescents and youth have a right to sexual and reproductive health, to live free from violence and coercion, and to exercise their sexual and reproductive rights. Youth involvement, comprehensive sexuality education, youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health services, an enabling legal and socio-cultural environment, and recognition of youth diversity are critical to ensuring that Jamaica’s young people lead healthy lives and where sexuality and reproductive health are positive and enjoyable aspects of being human. JYAN calls on the Honourable Minister to:

(a)Ensure that laws and policies around youth Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights are in sync and promulgated.
(b)Ensure that there is a real immediate coordinated multi-sectoral proactive approach to provide for a holistic Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights enabling environment.
(c)Sensitize fellow parliamentarians around government's commitment to honour UN processes and declarations or resolutions to boldly improve and advance commitments to immediately address Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights issues in the context of equal access to comprehensive services and education
(d)Ensure that there is a proactive response to SRHR issues are driven and guided by a Human Rights framework and evidence.
(e) Outline a clear plan of action for youth SRHR post 2015 MDG Agenda