The YPP Thailand team organized a Forum Meeting with their five local organizations on 29 June. The YPP National Coordinator Khun Katesanee Chantrakul, worked with the two Youth Motivators, Ms. Narissara Yebeo and Ms. Sayumporn Kirinimit, to help them prepare for their role and gave an excellent presentation on the Roles and Responsibilities of the Youth Motivators in the Thailand YPP. The representatives of the five local partner organizations actively participated in the meeting, raising many key issues related to their partnership in the YPP through the support of the Peer Support Programs in their schools and shelters. Some of the key issues that were discussed related to: selection criteria of the Peer Supporters, Child Protection issues related to the Peer Support Program, Roles and Responsibilities of the local partners in implementing the Peer Support Programs and the sustainability of the Program beyond the first year.

The YPP team has been busy with orientation trainings conducted by the National Coordinator, Mr. Junkung Jobarteh, to the two Youth Motivators, Ms. Hawa and Mr. Momodou . The first meeting was held on 26 June with other meetings on 14, 16 and 18 of July. At the trainings, participants discussed the aims of the Global YPP, Roles and Responsibilities of the Youth Motivators, Children’s Rights and CSEC, Life Skills and Leadership Trainings. The YPP Gambia has also identified their five local partner organizations to implement the Peer Support Program and organized its “Forum” meeting to share information about the Global YPP and to discuss in greater detail their roles and responsibilities in implementing the Peer Support Programs within their schools for the year.

On 19 June, EICYAC Africa and ECPAT Uganda launched a sensitisation campaign to eradicate the sexual exploitation of young people in Uganda. This young people media campaign is being conducted in two districts: Kampala and Wakiso. The opening session of the campaign took place at the Uganda Child Rights NGO Network, which hosts ECPAT in Uganda and was led by Jonathan Ssembajwe, the EICYAC representative for Africa, and Doreen Sampa, the ECPAT Coordinator in Uganda. Participants included peer educators from ECPAT partner organisations in Uganda, teachers, youth and children from schools who are now facilitators and educators in this campaign. They discussed what to teach in the campaign and prepared materials to use and also discussed the work plan. The campaign will last for five months and is expected that following this, forty thousand children and youths will be integrated into ECPAT Uganda on a long-term basis.

The YPP Team consisting of National Coordinator Ms. Anel Gomez and the two Youth Motivators, Maricruz Perez and Adalid Juarez, met on 15 June for their first orientation session at the ECPAT Mexico office. The agenda for the meeting was to meet the YPP team members, to learn more about ECPAT International and the Global YPP, and to understand the important role of the youth in the YPP implementation. There are other follow-up meetings planned for appropriate orientation and induction of the newly recruited Youth Motivators to the YPP Mexico. Since then the team has been meeting regularly for the induction and capacity building sessions.

The EICYAC representative for South Asia, Sabeena Tamang recently facilitated at two youth training sessions organised by CWIN BALIKA in Nepal. Sabina’s topics included a discussion on the physical and emotional changes felt by adolescents undergoing puberty and the youth’s vulnerability to commercial sexual exploitation and abuse. The training sessions were each conducted over seven days, in the rural community of Tokha in Kathmandu and at CWIN BALIKA. The training was attended by 208 youth participants from the squatter communities and covered issues such as family planning, abortion and HIV/AIDS. The training also provided awareness of Nepali law concerning sexual abuse, trafficking and how the youth can protect themselves against commercial exploitation.