A report on how to engage boys and men in sexual and reproductive health in the Pacific was formally launched at Parliament last night.

 MP and chair of the New Zealand Parliamentarians Group on Population and Development (NZPPD) Barbara Kuriger told guests at the launch event that the Open Hearing held last year was the fifth Open Hearing hosted by NZPPD in the last 15 years. Parliamentarians from Kiribati, Samoa, Tonga, Papua New Guinea and Tuvalu travelled to Wellington to participate alongside NZPPD.   

They heard submissions from health professionals, youth advocates, policy makers and researchers from the Pacific region. These experts shared their knowledge and experiences of engaging boys and men in sexual and reproductive health in their countries. Following the submissions, MPs held a roundtable discussion and developed a series of recommendations.

The result is the report titled Engaging Boys and Men in Sexual and Reproductive Health.  NZPPD hopes the report will be a valuable resource for New Zealand and Pacific MPs to continue to improve engagement of boys and men in sexual and reproductive health initiatives in the Pacific region.

Dr Laurent Zessler from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Pacific Regional Office told guests that the report validates UNFPA’s support to engage boys and men in sexual and reproductive health.

“The fourteen recommendations for future action are sound and relevant for all countries of the Pacific and in accordance with the United Nations priorities for action,” Dr Zessler said.

“We know that to achieve the recently approved Sustainable Development Goals by 2030 we must have universal access to sexual and reproductive health services and information.”

Photos by Woolf Photography.