The Yes I Do (YID) program ran from 2016 to 2020. It was a joint program of AMREF, CHOICE for Youth & Sexuality, KIT (Royal Tropical Institute), Plan Nederland, and Rutgers WPF, and their local partners in Africa and Asia in partnership with the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs. YID aims for a world in which adolescent girls can freely decide if, when and whom to marry, when and with whom to have children, and are protected from female genital mutilation and cutting (FGM/C). The YID program was implemented in seven countries: Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Zambia, Mozambique, Pakistan and Indonesia. 

The Yogyakarta Principles are a set of international principles that demonstrate how international human rights law can be applied in relation to sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI). Developed at an expert meeting in Yogyakarta, Indonesia in 2006, the document contains 29 principles and recommendations to governments, regional intergovernmental institutions, civil society, and the United Nations, and details how international human rights law can be applied to SOGI issues, and provides argumentation for why and how States are obliged to protect and fulfil these rights for all. The principles did not create any new rights, instead they show how rights which are internationally agreed upon, and which States are legally bound to enforce, also protect the rights and dignity of LGBTQIA+ people. For this reason the Yogyakarta Principles are an excellent advocacy tool which can help LGBTQIA+ activists hold their governments accountable to their international obligations.

The UN defines ‘youth’, as those persons between the ages of 15 and 24 years. CHOICE applies a broader definition of youth: young people aged between 15 to 29.

The role of Youth Ambassador SRHR, Gender Equality and Bodily Autonomy was set up by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) and CHOICE for Youth & Sexuality in 2015. Through this program, the MoFA and CHOICE, work together to give young people a voice and a platform to advocate for their sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and their meaningful and inclusive participation in all areas of decision-making; at the national, regional and international level. This partnership contributes to the development of progressive and inclusive policies for young people and emphasizes the importance of meaningful and inclusive youth participation in the design, development and implementation of sexual health policies. The Youth Ambassador provides an important link, connecting policymakers with the sexual health realities of young people around the world and within the Netherlands.

The Youth Bulge, also referred to as the Youth Dividend or Demographic Dividend, is a phenomenon whereby high rates of birth and low rates of infant mortality result in a large percentage of the population being under the age of 25. For example, in Africa, children under age 15 account for 41 % of the population and young persons aged 15 to 24 accounted for a further 19 % in 2015. Latin America and the Caribbean and Asia, which have seen greater declines in fertility, have smaller percentages of children (26 and 24%, respectively) and similar percentages of youth (17 and 16 % respectively). In total, these three regions are home to 1.7 billion children and 1.1 billion young persons in 2015.

Youth Friendly Health Services (YFHS), are health services which take the realities, needs and priorities of young people in a specific location into account. Truly youth-friendly services are designed, monitored and reviewed, and sometimes even implemented with the meaningful and inclusive participation of young people from the location where these services will be offered.

This concept is very much related to meaningful and inclusive youth participation – for CHOICE it means that young people are empowered to take up leadership roles in different areas of their lives, but especially in regards to claiming their Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR). Examples of youth leadership include young people taking meaningful roles on a board, a delegation, becoming members of parliament or taking leading roles in different political parties and government, taking part in decision-making spaces, and of course starting or being a part of youth-led spaces and organizations. Importantly, Youth Leadership is not as simple as just putting young people in leadership positions, young people should be empowered and given the knowledge, skills, and opportunities to take on this role. For example, young people (and the people they work with) often need capacity strengthening in different areas to ensure that they are able to participate meaningfully.

A Youth-Adult Partnership (YAP) is a partnership between young people and adults where both parties have equal decision-making power (they are ‘partners’). Importantly, young people and adults are seen as equal partners, who recognize the value and contribution of both parties. Both young people and adults are meaningfully involved at each step of the way, each bringing in their own unique expertise and skillset.

The definition is already in the name - youth-led advocacy is advocacy led by young people! This means that young people are meaningfully and inclusively involved in every aspect of the advocacy process – from selecting the issue, the audience, the advocacy strategies, to conducting advocacy themselves, and to monitoring and evaluating the successes and the areas for improvement.

CHOICE prides itself on being a youth-led organization, but what do we actually mean when we say that? Youth-led means that an organization is led by young people, and usually also works for young people (although this is not necessary!). As the name suggests, for an organization to be truly youth-led all of its decision-making positions must be filled by young people. These positions should not be symbolic – young people should have real decision-making power and are leading the organization. Furthermore, for an organization to be youth-led most, if not all, of its members should be young people, although it is possible for some ‘adults’ to have a role in the organization. For example, CHOICE’s financial controller is over the age of 29.