GYI Annual Report 2023 by Iniciativa Guatemala

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

OUR MISSION

GYI’s Mission is to reduce unplanned teen pregnancy, promote gender equality, and empower young mothers in extremely marginalized communities near the Guatemala City landfill that struggle with high levels of violence, crime, and poverty.

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A MESSAGE FROM A

TEEN MOM

More than anything I think a great challenge is being a mom and becoming accustomed to being a mom. After having my baby, I became depressed. I didn’t want anything. I was led to Guatemala Youth Initiative (GYI) and the truth is they helped me a ton, they talked to me. I would see new girls and I would ask, “are they going through the same thing?” Realizing I was not alone helped me a lot. Thanks to GYI I feel more secure about myself and can say that I love my daughter, and thanks to her I am who I am today.

It’s important to help young mothers because a lot of times we feel alone, we feel that we have nobody to help us, and because we don’t know a lot of things about parenting. GYI helps us learn about things that were absent in our childhood.

Guatemala Youth Initiative is seeing a change in awareness about sexual and reproductive health, and greater acceptance among schools and families to not only educate youth, but provide services as well.

WHAT’S NEW IN 2023

Sexuality Education Curriculum

Recognizing the importance of sexuality education within a framework of human rights and gender equality, GYI revised its curriculum to follow closely the International technical guidance on sexuality education established by UNESCO and WHO. This revision required a deeper look at the core topics for comprehensive sexuality education and the need to repeat those topics with increasing complexity at different age groups.

Integrated SRH Strategy

Sexuality education in schools, youth leaders to inform their peers, one-on-one youth-friendly spaces, and free access to contraception have all been part of GYI’s SRH Program, but lacked a cohesive strategy to connect them. These areas now work in unison by educating youth in school, empowering them to turn knowledge into action, individualizing support with a professional counselor, and making it easy and comfortable for them to access contraception when they need.

Teen Moms in Verbena

Verbena is the second area of the city where GYI launched its young mother support program. Starting with trainings for pregnant teens, the program expanded to incorporate early childhood development classes, workshops for wellbeing during maternity and childrearing, and most recently GYI’s Toddlers Program which will transition graduates into local preschools. GYI now offers its entire Young Mother Support Program in Verbena.

Hiring Local Young Adults

Community members, especially young adults, have experienced firsthand the difference it can make having support and guidance through nonprofit organizations. In GYI’s case, our work around teen pregnancy has not only made an impact in the lives of youth, but left them with a desire to give back to their community. GYI launched a fellowship program to give those youth a way to give back while gaining professional experience and earning an income.

MEET THE TEAM

GROWING OUR TEAM TO ACHIEVE OUR MISSION

GYI was incredibly fortunate to receive increased giving from its donors as well as new foundations committed to supporting our work around teen pregnancy. Increased support has allowed us to grow our team from 14 members to over 30 staff and fellows. The larger team has been able to improve the quality and depth of our existing programs while expanding services to reach more youth around the Guatemala City landfill.

SEXUAL

SEXUAL & REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH

&

REPRODUC TIVE HEALTH

In 2023, Guatemala Youth Initiative directed more resources towards youth-friendly spaces for SRH to give teenagers access to one-on-one consultations with a professional advisor. With sexuality education and peer-to-peer education providing teens with accurate information and awareness about the importance of SRH, youth can now seek individualized support, and easily access contraception when they need.

ANNUAL CONSULTATIONS FOR CONTRACEPTION

PARTNER SCHOOLS

1,219

STUDENTS TAUGHT

YOUTH LEADERS TRAINED

250

SEXUALITY EDUCATION WORKSHOPS

212

PATIENTS AT YOUTH-FRIENDLY SPACE

325

PEER-TO-PEER SRH CONVERSATIONS

1,262

WOMEN RECEIVED CONTRACEPTION

1,320

UNPLANNED PREGNANCIES PREVENTED

SUPPORT FOR YOUNG MOTHERS

Guatemala Youth Initiative’s Maternity Program continued to grow and provide more personalized support during 2023. The team provided 102 one-on-one consultations about pregnancy, breastfeeding, childcare and family planning. Between 2021-2023, only 1% of young mothers experienced a second unplanned pregnancy and roughly 82% provided their children exclusive breastfeeding during the first 6 months after childbirth.

OUR STATISTICS

458

EARLY CHILDHOOD CLASSES GIVEN

171

163

CHILDREN EDUCATED STUDENTS REACHED

PREGNANT TEENS REACHED

106 83% 37%

278

YOUNG MOMS REACHED

WORKSHOPS GIVEN (focused on teen parenting, wellbeing, and gender equality) OF MOMS ADOPTED MODERN CONTRACEPTION OF PREGNANT TEENS IMPROVED KNOWLEDGE ( on prenatal and postpartum care)

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IMPACT STORIES

One morning a 14-year-old patient came to the clinic to opt for a long-acting contraceptive method. She had already become sexually active with her 16-year-old boyfriend.

During the consultation with the nurse, she mentioned that during her first intercourse, her boyfriend did not know how to use a condom. However, she was able to walk him through the process because she had learned about sexual and reproductive health at her school, including how to use contraceptives. She also mentioned that her family knew that she wanted to opt for long-acting contraception, and although they were upset at first, eventually they were very understanding of her decision and desire to avoid an unplanned pregnancy.

It’s important to talk to youth about sexuality because in Guatemala it’s not something commonly seen, primarily in our community it’s taboo to talk about sexuality with your children, or siblings or some relative since it’s not something well understood nor to be taken lightly.

*The name used in the following quote has been altered to protect the individual’s privacy. The content and context of the quote remain accurate and true to the original source.

IMPACT STORIES

Flor was fourteen years old when she became pregnant with her son, Gael. Guatemala Youth Initiative met Flor during her last trimester while promoting its Maternity Program in Flor’s neighborhood. Shortly after she gave birth, the team invited Flor to schedule an appointment to explore her options for contraception, where she decided to use a long-acting reversible method. Flor began attending early childhood stimulation classes with Gael, and two years later he is now enrolled in GYI’s Learning with Love Program for toddlers.

Flor initially struggled to establish routines for Gael and communication at home was a challenge. GYI was able to accompany Flor and teach her about Positive Parenting, a model advocated by UNICEF, and quickly see their dynamic change.

“

I’ve seen big changes, because before he used to cry and not socialize and now he plays and talks more, following instructions and interacting and sharing with the other kids. Every time we come, he is super happy and it helps me have time together with Gael without interruptions. At home I share what I’ve learned with my family. My mom recently said she was never able to do that with me, because nobody ever taught her. *The name used in the

REVENUE 2023