Adolescent sexual health crisis

In 2022, the Demographic Health Survey reported that among every 10 female adolescents, one admitted to engaging in sexual activity before 15 years of age. Among this number, 15.2 per cent ended up with teenage pregnancy, with a significant proportion losing their babies through miscarriages and abortions. 

Adolescents accounted for six per cent of the total population of persons living with HIV in Ghana.

The Ghana Statistical Services (GSS) has shed more light on this issue by disclosing results from a study that focused on the sexual behaviour of adolescents between the ages 10 to 19 years across districts in Ghana.

The report revealed that among males, multiple sexual partner behaviour was more prevalent among adolescents in the Western and Oti regions with the practice more common among boys in the Oti region.

Among adolescent girls, Bono, Western and Western North regions hosted the top 10 districts with the highest prevalence of multiple sexual partners.

It was further reported that the Ashanti Region alone had nine of the top 10 districts with the highest prevalence of underage sexual activity among females (that is sexual activity before 16th birthday).

Among 16 to 19-year-olds in these districts, about two in every five adolescent girls were sexually active before 16 years. Other districts with a high prevalence of such behaviour among females were in the Western North and Bono.

Boys

In the case of adolescent boys engaging in underage sexual activity, all top 10 districts were found in the Eastern Region with about one in every three adolescent boys between 16 and 19 years admitting to indulgence in sexual activity before the age of 16.

In a country where about 22 per cent of its total population fall between 10 and 19 years, according to the 2021 Population and Housing Census, the impact of this behaviour on the physical and mental health of these young ones (including loss of lives) cannot be glossed over.

This is because these adolescents alone constitute a rich human resource that must be treasured. 

It is projected that Africa will have more adolescents than any other sustainable development goal region by 2050.

Ghana and other African countries, therefore, have a huge opportunity to boost economic productivity with these numbers.

As a country, we are at risk of not reaping the demographic dividend before us if we fail to address such issues that plague adolescents with alacrity.

While we may attribute these risky behaviours to peer pressure and their desire for a certain soft life, it is instructive to note that lack of education, unemployment and lack of entrepreneurial training and skills are major contributors to the sinking of our youth to such a low life.

This is why the flagship Free Senior High School (FSHS) policy is spot on.

Recognition

For these good reasons, there has been a growing global recognition of adolescent health evidenced by many initiatives including the United Nations’ Global Strategy for Women, Children and Adolescents’ Health (2016- 2030) and the Global Accelerated Action for the Health of Adolescents (AA-HA).

Simply put, we need a healthy crop of adolescents to drive the affairs of the world in the near future.

Comprehensive sex education programmes that are based on the results of a proper needs assessment and landscape analysis involving multi-stakeholder consultations can be tailored, district by district.

This is necessary as the galamsey areas, for instance, were identified to be the areas where the prevalence of multiple sexual partners was highest.

The role of parents and communities in offering support and guidance for these programmes cannot be overemphasised. Cycles of toxic parenting should be broken.

Innovative youth-friendly services provided in youth-sensitive spaces in health facilities by youth-friendly providers will be useful.

Finally, government and non-governmental organisations should engage these young ones in national platforms and dialogues on how to address their risky behaviours.

The writer is a Child Development Expert/Fellow at Zero-to-three Academy, USA.

E-mail: nanaesi_19@yahoo.co.uk