Sexual Health in a Young City in Peru: a community-based intervention.

The Cayetan Heredia University in Lima, Peru, developed a community-based intervention program on sexual and reproductive health of the youth. The Sexual Health in a Young City program covers all individuals aged 15-24 years living in two communities in Lima, Brena, and Pueblo Libre. The program departed from the argument that the youth could organize themselves and act for change in regard to their own sexual and reproductive lives. Rooted on the strategies of community education and empowerment, the intervention also seeks to mobilize community resources to improve the reproductive and sexual health of the youth. The 3 major components of the program are: 1) motivating and involving community actors; 2) strengthening and publicizing adolescent health services; and 3) designing and implementing a campaign for youth sexual health. However, the program encountered constraints and limitations. Despite these flaws, the program showed that the more important social actors in a community could be involved in coordinating efforts to promote reproductive and sexual health of the youth.