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Joshua Dilawar

Joshua Dilawar - 2017 Winner
Position: Project Officer
Organization: Samaj Development Foundation
Current Location: Pakistan, Asia
BA (Journalism and Sociology) from Punjab University
Additional Degrees and Certifications:
Capacity Building Course on Advocating SRHR.
Awards Received:
  • Award:
    Most Active Volunteer Award
    Awarding Organization:
    UNDP-Pakistan
    Date Awarded:
    August 12, 2015
  • Award:
    Youth Excellence Award
    Awarding Organization:
    Sughran Health and Education Development Organization
    Date Awarded:
    June 2, 2016
75 Public Votes Reached!
Joshua Dilawar is a young SRHR and family planning advocate. He has been able to bring innovations into social, behavior and economic change through performing arts, particularly through theater. He has been performing theater since 2012 to spread awareness regarding FP, SRHR, HIV/AIDS prevention, and awareness against early age marriages and violence against women, among the youth of different institutes and under-privileged areas. He initiated a network “Youth Coalition for Family Planning and SRHR” to advocate FP and SRHR through theater, which is an entertainment-education medium for long-lasting impact. “I believe that, being young activist, I can do several things to bring positive and sustainable change in the society. My motivation definitely comes from the fact that I am alive and I’m living on this amazing planet, Earth, with so much to do and so much to contribute to,” he says. Joshua has also conducted a couple of campaigns, e.g. “Theater to Eliminate HIV/AIDS” & “Be a Social Change,” to spread awareness regarding the prevention of HIV/AIDS, SRHR and FP. For his tireless work with UNDP-Pakistan under National Human Development Report 2015-2016, he received the Most Active Volunteer Award (2015). He is Global Citizenship Education (GCED) Alumni of UNESCO-Pakistan. He is actively working with International Youth Alliance for Family Planning (IYAFP), AWID, Amnesty International and International Youth Activists Network (iYAN) to spread awareness on SRHR, HIV/AIDS prevention and FP. He has founded the Institute for Social and Youth Development (ISYD) to engage youth to be active members and change agents.
experienced to work on safe birth preparedNess and complications readiness through street theaters. – farzana Ali shah, manager programs at Samaj development foundation
Describe your contributions to and achievements in family planning.

I’m a young SRHR and Family Planning Advocate. I’ve been able to bring innovations into social, behavior and economic change through performing arts (Theater). Theater is a great medium to disseminate such awareness among the audience even at grassroots level. It plays an important role in bringing change in behaviors and practices of people. I’ve been performing theater since 2012 to spread awareness regarding FP, SRHR, HIV/AIDS prevention and awareness against early age marriages and violence against women among the youth of different institutes and under-privileged areas. This includes a campaign “Youth Coalition for Family Planning and SRHR” to advocate FP and SRHR through theater which is an entertainment-education medium for long-lasting impact. I contributed at ICAAP12.

What sparked your passion for family planning?

In Pakistan, majority of the women particularly young girls are far away from the proper knowledge of SRHR and FP. Incidents of abortion are 50-60/1000 women or 2.10-2.30 million abortions in a year. According to CIA World Factbook (Infant mortality rate: male: 57 deaths/1,000 live births, female: 50.6 deaths/1,000 live births. I passion rooted in my past as I lost one of my dear friend just because of the no SRH access and knowledge. Therefore, I started working to advocate SRHR and FP.

Give one or two examples of how you display leadership in your family planning work.:

I initiated 2 campaigns e.g.“Theater to Eliminate HIV/AIDS” & “Be a Social Change” to spread awareness regarding the prevention of HIV/AIDS, SRHR and FP. I’m actively working with International youth Alliance for Family Planning, AWID, Amnesty International and International Youth Activists Network (iYAN) to spread awareness on SRHR, HIV/AIDS prevention and FP. I founded Institute for Social and youth Development to engage youth to be active members and change agents.

If you are named a winner of 120 under 40, how will you use this new platform and the $1000 grant to advance your work? :

I will be establishing and strengthening Youth Coalition for Family Planning and SRHR. I want to grow Youth Coalition for Family Planning and SRHR at National and International level to engage young people to breakdown the stereotypes and to exchange, share their ideas, issues and efforts to advocate for SRHR and FP. I will be advocating through performing arts (Theater performances) and awareness seminars to spread proper SRHR and FP education and to prepare young activists for FP in Pakistan.

Photos of the nominee in the field/at work

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