THE St Patrick’s Foundation will today launch its women’s sexual and reproductive health campaign – ‘My Body, My Responsibility’ – at its Seaview Gardens, Kingston 11 offices.

The women’s sexual and reproductive health campaign will run for a duration of six months – October 2019 to March 2020 – and will be focused on educating, informing and improving awareness around women’s sexual and reproductive health; encouraging young girls and women to take control of their bodies; making good choices; and empowering them to make better decisions.

The My Body, My Responsibility project was one of five that received a US$20,000 grant from the United States Embassy in Kingston, with a focus on improving the lives of Jamaican women and girls, centred around the theme ‘Innovative Women: Promoting Resilience and Development’.

According to Sandrina Davis, general manager, St Patrick’s Foundation, the campaign will target the young girls and women in communities it serve – Seaview Gardens, Riverton City, Olympic Gardens and Watehouse, as well as other surrounding communities in Kingston 11.

It is aimed, she said, at fostering change in behaviours and attitudes about sexual and reproductive health. Davis noted that the campaign’s name was deliberate, as the organisation wanted to reinforce the message that women should have full control of their bodies and their sexual and reproductive health decisions. “We want women and young girls to take responsibility and ownership for their bodies,” Davis said.

“Through the My Body, My Responsibility campaign, the St Patrick’s Foundation wants to aid in contributing to the positive conversations on women’s sexual and productive rights; be a facilitator in empowering young girls and women and be a source of information to help in breaking stereotypes when it comes to reproductive health and sex,” she added.

The overall objective of the project is to help in the prevention and alleviation of teen pregnancies, unplanned pregnancies and the transmission of HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections.

Throughout the course of the project, there will be several activities to include: self defence classes, support group meetings, a health summit, a female empowerment session and couples support group meetings.