Barometer 2024: Adolescent SRHR

• South Africa’s Department of Health has officially launched a cutting-edge mobile app designed to provide adolescent and youth-friendly health services (AYFHS) and information. This represents a significant advancement in improving young people’s access to essential health resources.  

• In Comoros, approximately 2% of all women are adolescents or youths who use modern contraception, yet around 7.3% of these individuals still have an unmet need for modern contraceptives. 

• A study by the Stop Stockouts Project (SSP), titled ‘Contraceptive Supply Chain: Stockouts and their Causes,’ revealed that contraceptives are the most common stockouts in South Africa, highlighting significant gaps in the supply chain. The high unmet need for contraception among South African adolescents and young women underscores the critical gaps in reproductive health services.  

• Although the region is still recovering from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, new viruses and potential pandemics are emerging, posing additional challenges to weak health systems. In South Africa, there is a notably high unmet need for contraception, with 31% of adolescent girls aged 15-19 and 28% of young women aged 20-24 lacking access to necessary contraceptive methods.  

• Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) equips young people with the knowledge, attitudes, and skills to make informed decisions about their health, well-being, and relationships. Despite its clear benefits, CSE’s implementation in Southern Africa faces numerous obstacles. Political resistance, cultural beliefs, and institutional challenges hinder the widespread adoption of CSE programs.   

• Mozambique faces the highest adolescent fertility rate (AFR) in the region, with 165 births per 1,000 women aged 15 to 19, which correlates with high rates of child marriages and early pregnancies. These statistics underscore the urgent need for enhanced ASRHR initiatives across Southern Africa to address these pressing issues. 

Download the Adolescent sexual and reproductive health and rights (ASRHR) chapter.
Download the full Barometer.