On October 30-31 Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin, Executive Director (ED) of UN Population Fund (UNFPA) and Under-Secretary General of the United Nations made his first official visit to Uzbekistan.
During his two-day visit, Dr. Babatunde met the Deputy Prime Minister of Uzbekistan Mr. Adham Ikramov and Chair of the Women’s Committee Deputy Prime Minister Ms. Elmira Basitkahnova. The sides exchanged their opinions on the results achieved on strengtheniung reproductive health and rights and the challenges faced in the regional scale. He also met Dr. Anvar Alimov, the the Minister of Health and discussed the contribution of the country progress on improvement of reproductive and maternal health and rights.
Dr. Babatunde visited UNFPA supported National Perinatal Centre, Uzbekistan Sport Complex in Tashkent and the NGO “Center of Initiatives for Civic Support ” to get acquainted with the results of these different structures in promoting the vision of the UNFPA on population matters. He also had a chance to visit mahalla communities to see what has been done on grass-root level and how the UNFPA’s involvement is perceived by men, women and youth.
During his meetings with high level officials and local people, Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin emphasized the further commitment of the Uzbek government to the provision of equal access of citizens to the knowledge and information on reproductive health and rights. He advocated for more government efforts on improvement of the access of young people to services and information on sexual and reproductive health. In the course of the visit Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin discussed progress of the country in achieving MDGs and ICPD goals and encouraged Uzbekistan’s further engagement in defining post-2015 MDG and post-2014 ICPD agenda.
One of the most interesting moments of the visit was the meeting with the local Y-PEER volunteers at the country office of the UNFPA in Tashkent. Dr. Babatunde highly appreciated the volunteerism of the young people in the Y-PEER network in Uzbekistan and its contribution in achieving the UNFPA mission in the country and globally. Notably, Uzbekistan’s Y-PEER network was recognized as the most active and vibrant in the year of 2009 and at the recent “10 days of activism” in the world.
“This is my first visit to Uzbekistan and after having met the government bodies and talked to local people of Uzbekistan, I can say that I am very impressed by the achievements of both the government and the local people living in mahallas”said Dr. Babatunde to the local journalist while giving an interview during his visit.
Y-PEER, the Youth Peer Education Network, is a groundbreaking and comprehensive youth-to-youth initiative pioneered and supported by UNFPA. Globally, Y-PEER represents a network of more than 500 non-profit organizations and governmental institutions, and its membership includes thousands of young people who work in the many areas surrounding adolescent sexual and reproductive health.
In Uzbekistan, UNFPA Country Office supports Y-PEER since 2005. Recognizing the need of improving access to quality information and knowledge on sexual and reproductive health for adolescents and youth, Y-PEER strives to promote a healthy life style among young people. Currently, the network brings together more than 350 active volunteers nationwide. UNFPA facilitates advanced training for volunteers, to create a pool of trainers knowledgeable in issues of sexual and reproductive health and rights, HIV/AIDS, stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV, gender equality, and drug abuse. They, in turn, organize cascades of training for peers in their regions and communities.
More on Y-PEER Network here: http://www.ypeer.uz/
