Background
Eswatini also has a very youthful population, with about 34% of the population aged 10 – 24 years, which translates to over 400,000 young Emaswati. The government of His Majesty has made positive moves in youth development, guided by the National Development Plan 2023-2027 and the National Youth Policy 2020. Young people in Eswatini face numerous challenges which include:
HIV/AIDS - continues to be one of the most pressing challenges that young people in our country are facing, with heightened vulnerabilities for girls and young women. HIV prevalence among young females aged 15-19 years stands at 10.2%, compared to 1.9% for males the same age. In the age group 20-24, HIV prevalence amongst females is 38.2%, compared to 12.3% for males in the same age bracket. HIV incidence is also significantly higher amongst young females Emaswati (15-19) compared to the males of the same age group standing at: 3.84 for females compared to 0.84 for males.
Teenage pregnancy is also a challenge for adolescent girls. Currently, the adolescent birth rate in the country stands at 78 per 1000 adolescents, and teenage pregnancy is one of the main factors contributing to school dropouts. Related to early and unintended pregnancies is early sexual debut, with the median age at first sex at 16 years for girls and 18 years for boys.
Gender-based violence – Young people in Eswatini continue to experience very high levels of violence, again disproportionately affecting girls compared to boys. The national estimate is that 1 in 4 women had experienced some form of sexual violence by the time they were 18 years.
Poor access to Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) information & services – A limited number of health care facilities in the country have youth-friendly services, and this deters young people from accessing SRH information and services from these institutions.
Eswatini is among the 7 countries in East and Southern Africa (ESA) region under the Safeguard Young People (SYP) programme. The Tune Me platform provides young Emaswati with access to SRH, HIV and GBV information and inspires them to have accurate information regarding their sexual reproductive health and rights. This is believed to trigger them to adopt positive, protective and healthy lifestyles. Tune Me also provides linkage to youth friendly health services. It is against this background that the Ministry of Sports Culture and Youth Affairs, ENYC, FLAS in collaboration with UNFPA Eswatini country office is recruiting an experienced consultant to manage and promote Tune Me.
Purpose and Objectives
The purpose of the consultancy is to provide social media marketing for Tune Me platforms in Eswatini.