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Recognising International Youth Day (12 August), Australia’s leading sexual healthcare organisation today called on the Commonwealth Government to provide Australian youth with access to comprehensive sex education in schools.

“A major focus of International Youth Day around the world is practical action to further encourage and empower youth to get involved in the decisions that affect their lives,” said Suzanne Dvorak, CEO of Marie Stopes International.

“Yet in Australia, where STI rates are at an all time high and unplanned pregnancy is a reality for many teens, sex education in schools still remains ad hoc.

“The current system is failing our young people and, on International Youth Day, it is time that all Australian teens received the support and education they deserve.”

In 2007 there were over 52,000 notifications of chlamydia nationwide. In comparison, there were just under 17,000 notifications of chlamydia in 2000 – indicating that the rate of diagnosis has nearly tripled over the past seven years.

Of those notifications over 13,000, or 1 in 4, were recorded for males and females aged 19 or under.

“These statistics, coupled with the fact that youth have a number of misunderstandings about the basics of contraception and STIs, are concrete proof that mandatory, comprehensive sex ed in schools is vital,” said Ms Dvorak.

In response to this information gap, Marie Stopes International has developed a range of sexual health resources and services for teens.

A 24-hour hotline has been set up to provide youth with around the clock access to sexual health help and advice. Teens can also access sex education via their mobile phone, texting ‘sexinfo’ to 19SEXTXT (19 739 898) and receiving a reply within seconds with 10 options for automated assistance on sexual health issues. The sextxt™ website – www.sextxt.org.au - and the likeitis.org.au website both complement these services with interactive information on sexual health topics to ensure young people are fully equipped with the facts they need.

“We believe that it is important to provide a wealth of information on various topics for teens, and to do so in a language and medium that they relate to,” said Ms Dvorak.

“Many young people are having sex at an early age and they are having unprotected sex.

“Ignoring the problem and shifting the responsibility for addressing it won’t make it go away, but educating youth on the risks and providing them with access to condoms will help contain it.”

The 24-hour sexual health hotline can be accessed by calling 1800 003 707. Calls to the service are free of charge from fixed line phones. The sextxt™ service costs 55 cents per SMS message and the initiative is a not-for-profit service.

About Marie Stopes International: Marie Stopes International is a not-for-profit sexual and reproductive healthcare provider, with centres in the ACT, VIC, NSW, QLD and WA. MSI offers a range of services, including abortion, vasectomy, sexually transmitted infection check-ups, contraception and community-based health promotion and education. The organisation is part of a global international partnership that delivers vital health services to over five million people in 42 countries worldwide. Surplus funds support Marie Stopes International Australia, our charity partner, which works to save lives and improve sexual and reproductive health in Indigenous Australia and throughout the Asia-Pacific region. For more information on the organisations, visit www.mariestopes.com.au and www.mariestopes.org.au (ends)

For media enquiries contact: Samantha Smith, Public Relations - 0421 097 150