Mombasa, Kenya – The 2025 Reproductive Health Network Kenya (RHNK) Conference erupted with energy, uniting young advocates, policymakers, and experts under the bold theme: Adolescents and Youth Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (AYSRHR) in a World of Emerging Threats and Opportunities.
The session attracted hundreds of participants from different organizations in Kenya and some East African countries. Speaking during the opening sessions UNFPA Kenya’s Pilar de la Corte Molina said, “There is an urgent need to prioritize adolescent and youth sexual and reproductive health and rights in a world grappling with climate change, online dangers, and deep-rooted inequalities.”
Accordingly, Rosebell Barbara from the African Center for Health, Climate & Gender Justice Alliance (ACHCGA) reiterated the need for unpacking the dangers involved in online engagements. Barbara said,” The time for young people’s views on sexual reproductive health to be taken into consideration has come.”
“Young people make -up almost 70 percent of Kenya’s population and it is crucial that they are engaged in the decision-making processes on health,” added Barbara.
On the second day of the conference Rosebell Barbara made a compelling presentation on Climate Change, Socio-Economic Stressors, and the Escalation of Femicide in Kenya. She underscored the interlinkages of climate, health, and technologically facilitated violence and femicide.
The conference also featured insightful discussions that explored the transformative role technology had played in advancing Adolescent and Youth Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (AYSRHR), along with the critical importance of youth-led advocacy and social accountability. What stood out is the unabated passion for countering anti-rights movements that have threatened hard-won gains in gender equality and health. Through these powerful dialogues, the conference reaffirmed the significance of centering youth voices in shaping health and rights agendas across Africa and beyond.
The 8th Pan-African Adolescent and Youth Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) Scientific Conference was so timely in Kenya. It discussed about critical issues in Kenya and beyond that warrant attention from government decision-makers, It also reiterated the need for courageous leadership, ethical and safe use of technology, and placing young people at the center of decision-making processes. It focused on building systems that truly listened to and responded to the relieved realities of adolescents and youth.
