The world is currently grappling with the COVID-19 pandemic that has severely stretched the health care systems of most countries and significantly compromised the social and economic order at micro and macro levels. One of the greatest con- stituency at risk of infection is the young people. Concerns continue to be raised on the low risk perception among young people as evidenced by incidences of breach or circumvention of preven- tive measures such as physical distancing and staying at home where possible. Similarly, the disruption of education with the closure of schools also comes with possible Sexual and Reproduc- tive Health and Rights (SRHR) risks such as teenage/early unintended pregnan- cies, Gender Based Violence (GBV) and new HIV infections due to limited engagement of young people and existence of fewer safety nets at home or community level compared to the school envi- ronment. Additionally, the loss of livelihoods is due to the economic effects of the epidemic is likely to expose young people to mental health challenges and may also drive them to crime.
These challenges coupled by the need to discern the real concerns around COVID19 among young people necessitated UNFPA in collaboration with the State Department for Youth Affairs, the Nation- al Youth Council, Ministry of Health, the Boda Boda Safety Association (BAK) and the UNFPA Youth Advisory Panel to convene a twitter chat
