The objective of this narrative review of the literature was to present a detailed understanding of unintended adolescent pregnancies and explore the factors associated with these pregnancies, their consequences, and any gaps identified in the extant literature.
In this report, UNICEF has conducted both a mapping of indicators and a new analysis of data on violence against children (VAC) prevalence and incidence across the region.
The global community committed to end all forms of violence against children by 2030. But the Europe and Central Asia region - and the world as a whole - are not on track to keep this promise to children.
Despite recent policy reforms, such as Education Circular No. 2 of 2021 and the Secondary Education Quality Improvement Programme (SEQUIP) initiative, aimed at facilitating school re-entry, adolescent mothers continue to face considerable emotional, financial, and institutional challenges.
Children with disabilities are twice as likely to experience violence compared to peers without disabilities.
New forms of violence, such as cyberbullying, have emerged partly due to the increased use of technological devices at an early age.
Condom education campaigns that aim to prevent early and unintended pregnancies can be undermined by local gender norms, religious edicts and ineffective sexuality education policies. In some schools in Ghana, both condom education and abstinence only education run concurrently.
The Sexuality Knowledge Assessment Questionnaire (SEKAQ) was designed to assess sexuality-related knowledge among adolescents and future health and education professionals, particularly within the context of school-based health education initiatives.
Sex education supports adolescents in building healthy relationships and managing reproductive health. Studies show that sex education programmes can be effective, but they often ignore the substantial challenges such programmes face in India.
Adolescent girls in India face numerous challenges related to their sexual and reproductive health (SRH), including inadequate knowledge, early marriages, teenage pregnancies, unsafe abortions and sexually transmitted infections (STI).