More Than Family Planning: Helping Girls Shape Their Own Futures

Before attending the workshop, more than four in five girls had never participated in a family planning activity. When thinking about readiness for starting a family, many focused primarily on having sufficient income, but had rarely had the opportunity to explore relationships, consent, health, shared responsibility, or their freedom to make their own life choices.

For girls growing up in Northeastern Thailand, these conversations matter.

Many are already thinking about higher education, future careers, and building stable lives. Yet without practical guidance, making informed decisions about relationships and parenthood can be challenging. Family planning is often seen as something to consider later in life, rather than a topic connected to education, health, financial independence, and personal aspirations.

To help bridge this gap, Pratthanadee Foundation, with the generous support of the OVOLPE Foundation, delivered the Better Me for Girls: Family Planning Workshop in June 2026, reaching 536 girls across four secondary schools in Ubon Ratchathani and Sisaket provinces:

• Nachaluai School
• Kantharalak Wittayakhom School
• Samrong Wittayakhan School
• Vichitra Pittaya School

🌱 Understanding the Girls We Work With

The baseline findings painted a clear picture of why this workshop was needed.

While 65% of participants identified financial security as important before starting a family, only 11% mentioned relationship quality or making decisions together with a partner. Readiness was often viewed through the lens of income rather than emotional wellbeing, health, caregiving, or shared responsibility.

The survey also revealed that girls often relied on informal sources of information. Although 74% said they would seek advice from parents or guardians, 45% would turn to the internet and 36% to friends, while only 28% identified health professionals as someone they would consult. Even more concerning, 81% could not identify counselling or support services related to sexual and reproductive health.

These findings showed that girls were already thinking about their futures—but many lacked reliable information and trusted support to help them make informed choices.

🎯 Learning Through Real-Life Experiences

The workshop was designed to make family planning relevant to girls’ everyday lives.

Rather than focusing only on reproductive health, participants explored how future decisions are connected to education, employment, financial independence, healthy relationships, consent, and personal goals.

Through interactive games, self-reflection, realistic scenarios, and group discussions, girls explored:

• Healthy relationships and personal boundaries
• Consent and respectful communication
• Contraception and STI prevention
• The financial realities of raising a child
• Shared responsibility within families
• Where and how to seek trusted support

📈 From Awareness to Understanding

The workshop led to clear improvements in knowledge and perceived readiness.

• Average knowledge scores increased from 48% to 85%
• 88% of girls improved their individual scores
• 95–98% of participants gave positive feedback across all learning areas
• Teachers gave 100% positive feedback, with every school expressing interest in future workshops

Girls gained practical knowledge about reproductive health, contraception, consent, and trusted support services. More importantly, they began to understand that preparing for a family involves much more than financial security alone.

💡 From Knowledge to Personal Agency

Perhaps the greatest outcome was not simply that girls learned new information, but that they began to recognise their own right to make decisions about their futures.

That single reflection captures the heart of the workshop.

Family planning is not about encouraging girls to choose one path over another. It is about ensuring they have the knowledge, confidence, and support to make decisions that align with their own values, aspirations, and circumstances.

Pratthanadee Foundation is deeply grateful to the OVOLPE Foundation for its continued partnership in helping girls gain practical knowledge, build confidence, and make safer, healthier, and more informed decisions about their lives.

Because family planning is not only about when to start a family—it is about giving every girl the freedom to decide whether, when, and how she wants to build her future.