The governor of Sohag Ahmed al-Ansary ordered the formation of a committee to raise awareness around reproductive health issues in the governorate after he participated in a policy dialogue with young people and representatives from different ministries organized by UNFPA as part of the Destination Egypt 2030 initiative that was planned and implemented as a part of “ICPD Egypt’s Roadmap to Nairobi”.

The committee will comprise representatives from the Ministry of Youth and Sports, the Ministry of Health and Population as well as young people representing Y-PEER, UNFPA’s youth leadership network, and Etijah Youth and Development Consultancy Institute.

The committee is tasked with developing an action plan for the coming three months, which includes innovative methods to raise awareness such as interactive theatre performances, workshops, and sports activities in different villages in Sohag.  

The governor highlighted the importance of scaling up and ending unmet need for family planning, as well as ending harmful practices through the participation of youth.

The policy dialogue concluded Destination Egypt 2030’s activities in the governorate of Sohag this month, organized in cooperation with the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Etijah Youth and Development Consultancy Institute, with the support of the Norwegian Embassy in Cairo.

This round aimed to raise awareness around the role of young people in combating Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).

The activities were centered on a 2 KM race on Friday August 23 with participation of 2,000 young women and men, which was followed by a concert by High Dam, Al-Mena, Saher El-Zoghby and Yasmine Zaki, as part of UNFPA’s Music for ICPD Initiative, as well as a performance by freestyle footballer Yorok.

Destination Egypt’s activities kicked off with a capacity building workshop and an interactive theater performance on August 22, tackling issues such as early marriage and population growth.

The initiative aims at mobilizing young people to address developmental challenges through active participation in sports, music, art, community mobilization and capacity building initiatives.

The initiative involves 3-day monthly activities across Egypt’s governorates promoting different developmental issues. It also seeks to promote different historical and touristic sites within the governorates.