Adolescents and Young People in Latin America and the Caribbean

Around 160 million adolescents and young people aged 10 to 24 live in the Latin America and Caribbean region, representing nearly 25% of the region's population. In other words, 1 out of every 4 people in the region is an adolescent or young person. 

Generally, today's adolescents and young people are more educated, more open to change, technologically savvy, and aware of their rights. However, the inequality gaps in our region, which has been characterized as the most unequal in the world, continue to disproportionately affect adolescents and young people.

Furthermore, the region is experiencing a stage of demographic transition where the proportion of people in potentially productive ages is growing steadily in relation to those in potentially inactive ages (under 15 and over 60). This transitional stage places the region in the moment of the so-called "demographic dividend," where the percentage of the working and producing-age population is much larger (up to double) than the percentage of the dependent population.

This favorable situation means that society has greater opportunities to generate the fiscal and contributory resources that allow for more solid investment in the younger generations who are preparing to enter the workforce. In this sense, the demographic dividend is a tremendous window of opportunity for countries, as it signifies a greater proportion of the population capable of working, producing, saving, and investing.

What Does UNFPA Do?

Adolescence is a stage in which young people acquire decision-making skills, including those related to their sexual and reproductive health. As the United Nations agency for sexual and reproductive health, UNFPA's vision is to create a world where every young person can make their own decisions and fully enjoy their rights. 

The United Nations Population Fund, UNFPA, has a clear commitment to adolescents and young people. This commitment is based on agreements established by countries in various international instruments such as the Cairo Programme of Action and its regional follow-up, the Montevideo Consensus, the Beijing Platform for Action, and the Global Strategy for Women's, Children's and Adolescents' Health (2016-2030), all of which guide the implementation of the great global consensus represented by the Sustainable Development Goals. 

"My Body, My Life, My World" is UNFPA's strategy to ensure that every young person has the knowledge and power to make informed decisions about their body and life, and participates in transforming the world they live in.

Guided by "My Body, My Life, My World," UNFPA works with young people across the Latin America and Caribbean region, placing them at the center of sustainable development. 

MY BODY - Making informed decisions about one's own body

UNFPA works to champion sexual and reproductive health and rights to ensure that all adolescents and young people can make informed decisions about their bodies. This includes ensuring that:

• Health services are fully geared towards realizing the rights and options of adolescents and young people within health interventions, policies, and programs.
• Health providers are trained to offer accurate, age-appropriate, and confidential services to adolescents and young people who may be experiencing gender-based violence or harmful practices, such as child, early, and forced marriage and unions.
• Health centers are equipped to offer the necessary sexual and reproductive health products, services, and information, and support referrals to other important services.
• Gender-based violence prevention incorporates gender-transformative and youth-sensitive approaches.
• Policies and programs addressing child, early, and forced marriage and unions take into account an intersectional approach and the participation and empowerment of girls, adolescents, and young people.
• Young people are mobilized to share perspectives and opinions to improve quality and accountability at the community level.

MY LIFE - Enjoying a healthy life and a satisfying transition to adulthood

The decisions young people make—or are often forced to make—determine their lives both now and in the future. For example, the simple choice to stay in school can protect them against early pregnancy, child marriage, gender-based violence, and HIV infections. However, many cannot exercise their right to choose due to deep-rooted poverty and discriminatory social norms. 

UNFPA works across the Latin America and Caribbean region to ensure that adolescents and young people have access to age-appropriate comprehensive sexuality education both within and outside the school environment. This provides young people with information (on bodily autonomy, menstruation and menstrual hygiene, and puberty, to name a few) and life-changing skills, empowering them to exercise their sexual and reproductive rights by making informed decisions about their bodies and rights. 

To achieve this, UNFPA works to ensure that: 

• Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) is institutionalized in school curricula.
• School teachers, as well as leaders and mentors of community and civil society organizations, receive training to provide sexuality education in accordance with international standards.
• Digital sexuality education tools and platforms can be co-created with young people to ensure their relevance and reach.
• Girl- and adolescent-centered programming is incorporated into programs and policies that empower girls and adolescents to live free from early marriage and unions, adolescent pregnancy, and sexual violence.

MY WORLD - Leading and participating in sustainable development, humanitarian action, and peace

When young people have a voice in decisions made, policies and services are more likely to respond to their rights and needs. This is also true in humanitarian and peacebuilding contexts. But, too often, decision-makers exclude young people and don't give them a seat at the table. UNFPA works with and for young people, co-creating solutions that strengthen their potential and expand their possibilities for forging a more equitable, peaceful, and just future.

UNFPA's goal is to promote and strengthen the leadership and participation of diverse youth through various actions, including:

• Collaborating with youth-led organizations and networks, helping them participate in decisions that affect them and strengthening their capacity to promote human rights and development issues. 
• Driving the development of inclusive and youth-friendly policies that address their rights and needs.
• Generating disaggregated data and evidence on adolescents and young people that strengthens the development of evidence-based policies.
• Advocating for increased investment in young people, especially girls, as unwanted pregnancies or forced early marriages can disrupt their lives, limit their life choices, and negatively impact their well-being. 
• Promoting meaningful youth participation at national and international levels, with special attention to Afro-descendant, indigenous, and disabled people, and those living with HIV/AIDS, leaving no one behind. Their voices must be heard, and their active participation as agents of change needs to be promoted.