The objective of this report is to explore the landscape of (comprehensive) sexuality education in the Arab region. In doing so, UNFPA’s Arab States Regional Office (ASRO) aims to identify promising initiatives and any potential best practices for replication or scaling, and seek entry points for CSE in the different Arab states. This does not stand alone, but is interlinked with UNFPA’s strategic plan (2018-2021), and thus the three transformative results, as well as UNFPA’s Youth Strategy.
It is important to note that CSE should not be seen as an individual objective, rather it is a tool to address the overall sexual and reproductive health and well-being and improve development outcomes. Therefore, the report will firstly introduce CSE and related key-concepts and entry-points, such as unintended pregnancies, family planning, gender-based violence, female genital mutilation, HIV and STIs, child and early marriage, etc. This chapter is followed by one introducing relevant legislation and international frameworks, for example, International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) Programme of Action, the Beijing Platform for Action and The Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women. Nevertheless, the core of the report is a situational analysis of CSE in the different Arab states.