Belize LAP

LAP Belize 2007

The 2007 Belize team recognizes the lack of knowledge youth have on sexual and reproductive health in Punta Gorda and Bella Vista.  They envision these communities with fewer cases of HIV/AIDS and reduced teenage pregnancy.  By targeting youth ages 13-17, these Fellows plan to implement public awareness campaigns on HIV/AIDS and sexual and reproductive health (SRH), as well as increasing access and use of condoms to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS in Punta Gorda and Bella Vista.

Another objective of the 2007 Summit Fellows is to increase the number of youth leaders in the field of SRH.  To reach these goals Fellows will lead a course on SRH in Punta Gorda and implement 15 workshops for 25 youth leaders in the Toledo District, visit rural school districts and disseminate information on SRH via pamphlets, radio and TV PSA’s designed by the youth leaders, hold soccer marathons in Punta Gorda and Bella Vista to encourage and educate youth in the community on issues of SRH.

LAP Belize 2006

The Belize 2006 team has completed their project focused on increasing awareness on sexual and reproductive health (SRH) among youths ages 11-25, to reduce the rate of teenage pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and to make contraceptives available free of charge to youth in Arenal Village, Cayo District.

During the one-year project the Team successfully conducted a village reproductive health needs assessment, including a village-wide survey, trained 15 youth ages 13-23 to become peer educators through numerous workshops and two three-day leadership outings, held two medical and health outreach days in which they distributed contraceptives, held a SRH forum for over 100 youth and families and administered a round of reproductive health workshops in Arenal Village.

The Team also held a skill transfer meeting with a group of US students in Armenia Village, Belmopan enabling the Arenal youth to share what they had learned through GOJoven in a creative and interactive way. The Team has managed to leverage the GOJoven seed funds with financial and human resource donations from the Cayo District government and other donors.

LAP Belize 2005

The 2005 Belize Summit Fellows seek to promote positive behavior change through trainings on sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and leadership skills among staff and target groups in the following five institutions: Muffles High School, Domestic Violence Unit of the Police Department, Fisheries Department, the Pan-American Social Marketing Organization (PASMO) and the Community Rehabilitation Department. To date, the team has held nine training sessions on HIV/AIDS and leadership utilizing the Behavior Change Communication strategies.  These sessions have reached 39 participants at Muffles High School and PASMO.

The Team joined the Community Rehabilitation Department, Youth for the Future and Belize Family Life Association in providing a Personal Development Program comprised of five days of workshops on SRH provided to 50 students, out-of school youth, and members of different youth groups ages 13-25 in the rural areas of Orange Walk Town. Additionally, they provided SRH information through a sports program which included three days of basketball and football games for over 90 youth. Training sessions with Police and Fisheries staff are scheduled to be held in the future.

These fellows also plan to increase public awareness about HIV/AIDS among 500 youths in northern Belize through an AIDS benefit concert and have scheduled the concert for 2008.

LAP Belize 2004

Calling themselves the Belizean Advocates for Youth (BAY), the Belize team has initiated its Youth Empowerment Project (YEP) to mobilize and train 30 young leaders between the ages of 13 and 20 to be a peer educators at Orange Walk Technical High School in northern Belize and at the 4-H Youth Development Centre in Belmopan, the country’s capital.

The Team conducted bi-weekly trainings focused on a range of adolescent reproductive and sexual health (ARSH) issues, including teen pregnancy, STIs, HIV-AIDS, family planning, self-esteem, and sexuality for the peer educators and organized outings for the group, including involvement in a march for World AIDS Day and a trip to the Guatemala-Belize border to provide migrants with information on family planning and STI prevention. In each location, the team worked with the peer educators to organize and conduct a health fair in their institution and obtain media coverage of activities. Team members networked with PASMO and MOH (Red Cross) who are interested in training the peer educators and have received financial and in-kind support for their outreach efforts.

The final retreat and graduation of the peer education group is scheduled for 2008.

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    GOJoven's Mission

    GOJoven promotes and supports young leaders to act as catalysts for social change in Adolescent Reproductive and Sexual Health. Read more here


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