Review of

Adolescent and Youth

Policies, Strategies and Laws

in Selected Countries in West Africa

Front cover image: © Ollivier Girard / UNFPA
4 14
Acroynms Chapter 1: Child Marriage Policies and Laws
Policies and Strategies on Child Marriage
Laws on Age of Marriage
5
Regional Director Foreword
18
Chapter 2: Adolescent and Youth Health Policies and Laws,
6 Including Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health
Executive Summary Policies and Strategies on Adolescent and Youth Health
Legal Frameworks for Adolescent and Youth Health

9
Introduction 24
Chapter 3: Other Health Policies that have an impact
on Adolescent and Youth Health
11
Data Overview
28
Chapter 4: Education Policies and Strategies

32
Chapter 5: Youth Policies, Including Youth Employment

36
Key Findings and Recommendations

40
Annex
Annex I: Table of Policies Reviewed per Country
Annex II: WHO–UNAIDS Global Standards for Quality Health
Care Services for Adolescents
 Acronyms

AIDS Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome

CBO Community-based Organization

CDC Centres for Disease Control

CI (number-specific) Confidence Interval

NACC National AIDS Control Committee

DHS Demographic and Health Survey

FCUBE Free Compulsory Universal Basic Education

FP Family Planning

GEST Gender Equality Sector Test

HCT HIV Counselling and Testing

HIV Human Immunodeficiency Virus

MAF Millennium Development Goals Acceleration Framework

MNCH Maternal, Neonatal and Child Health

MOE Ministry of Education

MoGCSP Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection

MOH Ministry of Health

MOJ Ministry of Justice

MOY Ministry of Youth

MoYS Ministry of Youth and Sports

MSA Ministry of Social Affairs

NGO Non-governmental Organization

NSYH National Strategy for Youth Health

STI Sexually Transmitted Infection

SRH Sexual and Reproductive Health

UNAIDS Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS

UNFPA United Nations Population Fund

USAID United States Agency for International Development

WCA West and Central Africa

4
Regional Director Foreword

UNFPA recognizes the critical importance of Findings from the review show that while there
investing in adolescents and youth to harness the were examples of enabling and supportive policies
demographic dividend in West and Central Africa. and laws, most countries had a complex – and
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development often contradictory – set of laws, policies and
highlights the importance of realizing the strategies pertaining to adolescents and youth
demographic dividend and it is also recognized that may act as significant barriers to adolescents’
in the Africa Common Position on the Post-2015 access and uptake of health services, education
Agenda as well as the African Union’s Agenda and employment, and could increase their
2063 on the Africa We Want. “Harnessing the vulnerability to child marriage.
demographic dividend through investments in the
Youth” is also the African Union’s theme for 2017 The review proposes several recommendations
and this will also be the focus of deliberations to develop and implement enabling policies and
during the Summits of Heads of State and legislation. UNFPA WCARO urges government
Government. partners, UN agencies, youth networks and
CSOs to take stock of the review findings and
However, we will fail to achieve the demographic recommendations. WCARO is committed to
dividend if we do not take the right actions today supporting governments and other partners
to put young people first and invest in their health, to create this enabling policy and legislative
education, employment and empowerment. This environment and to ensure that the full potential
will require a paradigm shift in the way we do of every young person can be realized in order to
work, and more importantly, the way we work with harness the demographic dividend.
and empower young people.

Achieving this paradigm shift will only occur if

there is an enabling legal and policy environment
that empowers and allows young people –
especially young girls – to be protected from child
marriage, access health services, be educated and
have decent employment.

UNFPA West and Central Africa Regional Office

(WCARO) commissioned this policy and legal
review to shed light on the complex set of policies
and legislation that govern adolescents’ and youth
health, education, protection and well-being in five
countries in the region.

5
 Executive Summary

Introduction The review’s objectives were to:

Adolescent health and development are key • Identify the main laws, policies and strategies
foundations for a country’s economic development affecting adolescents and youth including those
and political stability. The outcomes of adolescent pertaining to child marriage, health, education,
health are closely linked with future adult employment and youth development.
development, infant and child mortality, maternal
morbidity and mortality, and even long-term • Identify the main legal, policy and strategy
economic development. issues governing adolescents and youth.

Adolescents and youth in West and Central • Provide recommendations on next steps.
Africa (WCA) face considerable challenges in
terms of their health, education, employment and The methodology employed a desk review of legal
empowerment. Adolescent girls are particularly frameworks (laws, penal code, child rights acts)
vulnerable. This region has some of the highest child as well as ministerial level policies and strategies
marriage rates in the world with two out of five young (national policies or national strategies).
girls married before the age of 18 years. The study assessed how the law and policies
It is also the region with the largest percentage treat adolescents in terms of defining their
(28 percent) of women between the ages of 20 and protection from early marriage, ensuring their
24 years who reported a birth before the age of 18 access to SRH services and education and creating
years as well as the largest percentage (6 percent) job opportunities for them. It also examined legal
of reported births before the age of 15 years.1 and policy contradictions in relation to these
issues. National policies were also evaluated
One of the key factors determining the life of an for the inclusion of specific health and education
adolescent in the region is the policy and legal strategies related to adolescent Sexual and
environment they live in. Policies and laws can act Reproductive Health (SRH) including HIV as well
as either a protective factor or a significant barrier as child marriage. The full set of laws and policies
to the protection, health, education and employment reviewed per country is given in Annex I.
of young people. This report reviews the legal and
policy frameworks impacting adolescents and youth The study is limited because of the desk review
in five countries in West Africa. nature of the methodology. It is intended to
provide an overview and comparison of laws and
policies across multiple countries with the aim of
Methods identifying both promising examples that create
an enabling environment for adolescent and youth
The review was undertaken in the context of the development, as well as policy and legal barriers.
Global Programme to Accelerate Actions to End As it is a desk review, it is not a comprehensive
Child Marriage. In WCA, the programme covers review of policies and laws and their application
five countries: Burkina Faso, Ghana, Niger, Nigeria within target countries. This study can provide a
and Sierra Leone. The review focuses on the policies basis for a more thorough review and contextual
and laws in these five countries with the overall analysis that assesses how these policy and legal
aim of shedding light on the complex legal and frameworks affect the implementation of child
policy environments that govern adolescents’ – marriage, adolescent and youth health, education
particularly adolescent girls’ – lives and how these and youth employment programmes.
laws and policies can impact their health, education,
employment and development opportunities.

1
Motherhood in Childhood: Facing the Challenge of Adolescent Pregnancy. State of the World’s Population 2013.

6
Key Findings age of marriage at 18 years for both boys and
girls, with no exceptions. The other countries have
This report includes a review of policies and the legal age set lower, or have legal loopholes
strategies on child marriage, adolescent and sexual through which marriages are allowed below the
health (including adolescent pregnancy strategies age of 18 years, with parental consent. There are
that often integrate child marriage issues); other several advocacy movements gathering pace in
health policies and strategies that have an impact these countries to increase the minimum age of
on adolescents and youth (such as reproductive marriage and close the loopholes.
health policies) and education and youth policies
with a focus on youth employment. In addition, • Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health:
there is a legal analysis of laws related to age of Every country has a policy, strategy or action plan
marriage as well as laws impacting adolescents’ on adolescent health that also covers adolescent
access to SRH services, such as age restrictions to SRH. Most of these policies include measures
contraceptive services and HIV counselling to address adolescent pregnancy. While several
and testing, and sexual consent laws. policies support adolescent access to SRH
services, they often do not provide any specific
The review found that while there were examples provisions on the accessibility and quality of
of enabling and supportive policies and laws, most these services or healthcare provider training.
countries had a complex – and often contradictory In many cases, the legal ambiguities surrounding
– set of laws, policies and strategies pertaining to age of access to contraceptives and other SRH
adolescents and youth that may act as significant services mean that the final decisions may rest
barriers to adolescents’ access and uptake of health in the hands of the healthcare providers, creating
services, education and employment, and could a situation of bias in provision of these services.
increase their vulnerability to child marriage. The review included a legal analysis of sexual
The findings are: consent laws. While these laws are primarily
protective in nature, in cases where the legal
• Child Marriage: Child marriage is an issue age to sexual consent is very high (18 years and
across all the countries reviewed, though the above), it can act as a barrier to adolescents
prevalence varies considerably, with Niger seeking SRH services. For instance, in both Sierra
having the highest prevalence rate in the world Leone and Nigeria where 18 years is the age of
(76.3 percent) to Ghana with a relatively lower sexual consent (according to federal law; state
prevalence rate (20.7 percent). Only one of laws in Nigeria can differ), situations are created
the five countries covered in this review has a where adolescents below the age of 18 years
national strategy on child marriage – Burkina are reluctant to access services, or are denied
Faso – while Ghana and Nigeria are in the services by healthcare providers due to this law.
process of developing national strategies or
policies in 2016 on this issue2. Both Niger and • Education Policies and Strategies: All countries
Sierra Leone address the issue of child marriage, in this review have an education policy or strategy
to some extent, in their national policies on stating that basic education is compulsory and
adolescent pregnancy. Far less promising is free. However, most countries did not cover
the legal environment related to child marriage additional associated costs of schooling such as
across the five countries. According to school uniforms and textbooks that can act as a
international and regional conventions related significant barrier to education access, especially
to rights of children and adolescents, the law among poorer communities. It is worth noting
should set the age of marriage at a minimum of that Burkina Faso has a specific strategy on
18 years for both boys and girls. However, only accelerating girls’ education. The review also
Ghana has unequivocal legislation that sets the examined whether education policies included

2
Both of these national strategies/policies fall outside the purview of this review

7
 provisions for sexuality education or health • Ensure that child marriage laws are aligned
education more broadly. All countries’ policies with international standards as enshrined in the
included some mention of health education, Convention on the Rights of the Child as well as
either with a focus on sexual health, family the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare
health or HIV. of the Child. This means that the minimum age
of marriage is set at 18 years for both sexes and
• Youth Policies, including Youth Employment does not include any exceptions with parental or
Policies: while none of the countries had a guardian consent.
specific policy or strategy on youth employment,
all countries had a youth policy, strategy or • Governments should develop or revise policies
action plan that covered youth employment in and enact legislation that protects young
depth, with a focus on job creation, training for people’s rights to the highest attainable
youth and inter-sectoral responses to address standard of health. SRH services should be
the issue of youth unemployment. aligned with the standards for youth- and
adolescent-friendly services outlined by
the WHO (given in Annex II). Policies and
Recommendations legislation should allow adolescents’ access to
SRH and HIV services, including contraceptive
West and Central Africa’s population is services and HIV counselling and testing. All
predominantly young. More than 64 percent are countries in the review are signatories to the
under the age of 24 years. Young people are a Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC).
tremendous resource for the region – but only with The CRC asks governments to recognize the
the right investments in their education, health, evolving capacity of adolescents to make
skills and empowerment. independent decisions regarding their health.
This calls for a review and overhaul of policies
The creation of an enabling policy and legal and legislation that do not allow adolescents to
environment that protects and promotes the access SRH services without the consent of their
health, well-being, education and employment of parents or guardians.
young people, particularly adolescent girls, is an
important part of ensuring that their full potential • Laws governing age of consent to sex and age of
can be realized. Therefore, policies should seek consent to SRH services should be harmonized.
to enable and empower young people and be Age of consent to sex should be set at an
supported by legislation that upholds their rights. age that recognizes that many young people
While there are several promising practices that commence sexual activity during adolescence.
countries can build on, this review found that
there is a complex – and often contradictory – • Education policies should cover both primary
set of policies and legislation in place across and secondary education, with a special focus
the five countries covered in this study. The on girls’ education, and remove barriers to
recommendations to address this are: education through removal of school fees,
subsidizing of school uniforms and textbooks
• Child marriage policies should include a and, if possible, provision of school meals.
comprehensive set of policy approaches to They should also include provision for sexuality
accelerate actions to end child marriage, and to education programmes in schools.
protect adolescent girls at risk of marriage, as
well as cover adolescent girls who are already • Policies and strategies should be costed and
married. funded in order to support their implementation.
Laws should be implemented through support
through the appropriate judicial systems.

8
Introduction

Adolescent health and development is one of The findings are limited because of the desk review
the key foundations for economic development nature of the methodology. The study is intended
and political stability in a country. The outcomes to provide an overview and comparison of specific
of adolescent health are closely linked with future laws and policies across multiple countries but is
adult development, infant and child mortality, not a comprehensive review and does not assess
maternal morbidity and mortality, and even the implementation of those policies or laws
long-term economic development. covered. It can provide a basis for a more thorough
review and contextual analysis that assesses
A major factor that impacts adolescents and how these policy and legal frameworks affect
youth is the legal and policy environment they the implementation of child marriage prevention,
live in. Policy and legal frameworks that uphold adolescent and youth health, education and
their rights to health, education, employment and employment programmes.
empowerment are often contradictory between and
within national laws, and sometimes in contradiction The results per country are presented within
with regional and international conventions the results section of this report, as are general
signed by the country. These inconsistencies limit comparison and data-driven tables.
adolescent and youth development. The specific national policies and strategies
reviewed were identified as 3 :

Methodology • Child marriage policies/strategies.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the • Adolescent health policies/strategies, including
current legal and policy situation for adolescents adolescent SRH.
in five countries in West and Central Africa,
specifically Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria, Ghana • Other health policies impacting adolescents and
and Sierra Leone. These countries were the target young people.
of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
and the United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund • Education policies/strategies.
(UNICEF) Joint Programme on Child Marriage in
the WCA region. • Youth policies/strategies, including youth
employment.
The methodology employed a desk review of:
The legal analysis covers the laws below and
• Legal frameworks (laws, penal code, how their interpretation can act as protective or
child rights acts). restrictive barriers for adolescents and youth:

• Ministerial policy-level strategies • Age of marriage.

(national policy or national strategies).
• Age (or other) restrictions to access to
This study assessed how the law and policy contraceptive services.
treated adolescents, examined legal and policy
contradictions and made recommendations to build • Age (or other) restrictions to HIV counselling
on good practices and address gaps. National and testing.
policies were also evaluated for the inclusion of
the specific health and education strategies related • Age to sexual consent.
to child marriage, adolescent SRH including HIV,
education, employment and participation.

3
It does not include subnational policies/strategies or national policies that were under development at the time of writing.

9
 Based on precedent and on the United Nation’s • National laws: National laws set the precedent
definition of adolescents, this study considered for the legal application of adolescent and child
youth, adolescents and young people to be rights in a country. In most countries under
aged between 10 and 24 years. For all policies, review, the overall legal structure defines the
strategies and laws related to child marriage, penal (criminal) code differently from the civil
access to services and education, the primary code (a collective group of laws governing
demographic group considered was those aged private matters, commerce and negligence
between 10 and 19 years. For youth employment lawsuits). Contradictions in these codes
and development, the broader demographic group regarding adolescents create challenges in
of 10 to 24 years was retained. knowing and understanding how the law is
applied. For example, if the civil code defines a
The desk reviewed over 30 policy and legal child as anyone under the age of 18 but the penal
documents per country but not every country had code allows marriage at 15 years, the country
specific policies regarding all the subjects detailed has conflicting laws that create a complex and
above. However, the basic legal framework that ambiguous environment for health services and
governs the approach to adolescents within the programmes to exist. If the legal age of marriage
government framework was obtainable. is 15 years, but a child is defined as anyone
under 18 years, and HIV testing can only be
The study covers the following elements in the conducted for children under the age of 18 years
analysis: with consent from their parent or guardian, this
creates a dilemma for a health worker faced with
Policy and Strategy: The strategies and a married woman of 17 years that requests an
policies that existed in each country and the HIV test during pregnancy.
relevant sections that had implications for
adolescents and youth. This included policies • International legal frameworks and conventions:
that have a direct relevance (e.g. child marriage, International treaties and conventions set the
adolescent health, youth, education policies) and standard for the legal approach to a given
those that have an indirect, but often equally subject. Signatory countries to international
important, impact on adolescents and youth (e.g. treaties have agreed, in principle, to standardize
reproductive health and other health policies). their national laws and legal application on
The review also looked at the years the policy or subjects defined in the international agreement.
strategy was valid for, to evaluate if the policy was Issues such as the definition and legal
still currently in affect. Throughout WCA, national parameters of who is a child and thus deserving
strategies, policies and strategic plans are often of protection from child marriage, and other
written in five-year cycles, though some countries forms of exploitation of adolescents and the
have set important development goals in 10-year right to health services, have been defined in
cycles. the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)
[UN, 1990], the Maputo Protocol and the African
Laws: The review also included a legal analysis Union Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the
specifically related to legal age stipulations Child. All countries in this study have signed and
related to marriage, sexual consent and access ratified the CRC. However, in all countries, either
to SRH services. While it is not intended as a the penal or civil code, or the national policies
comprehensive legal analysis, it does give an contradict one or more of the ratified articles
indication of the complexity of laws for adolescents of the CRC or the African Charter. In addition,
and youth. The review provides a legal analysis of issues such as child marriage, health and
national laws against international and regional education related specifically to adolescent girls
conventions and commitments where relevant. and young women are covered in the Convention
on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
against Women (CEDAW).

10
 Data Overview

The table below provides the epidemiologic and

development indicators that give an overview of
the sexual health, marital status, education and
reproductive health outcomes of adolescents in
Burkina Faso, Ghana, Niger, Nigeria and Sierra
Leone. Indicators for SRH include age of sexual
debut, teenage pregnancy, fertility rates and other
data points. Marital status is measured by the
median age of individuals at marriage and the
percentage of women married by the age of
18 years. Indicators for education include
percentage of adolescents attending school.
HIV indicators include adolescent prevalence rates
and the percentage of females aged 15 to 19 years
who have comprehensive knowledge of HIV/AIDS.
There are diverse results across the countries
and some results are obviously different given the
different socio-economic status of each country.

Ghana and Nigeria are considered middle-

income countries according to the World Bank
Atlas method in 2013, while Niger, Burkina Faso
and Sierra Leone are considered low-income
countries. Niger has the worst adolescent health
results in the world, based on the UNPD Human
Development Index of 2014. Niger, Nigeria and
Burkina Faso have had political instability over
the past five years and, due to growing terrorist
activity in the Sahel and within Northern Nigeria,
security remains precarious in the countries. Sierra
Leone emerged from a shattering civil war just ten
years ago, only to be inundated by the devastation
of the Ebola outbreak and its aftermath. Ghana
is the only country to avoid dramatic political or
health devastation over the past ten years and has
an emerging strong economic outlook; despite
this corruption and disenchantment with political
parties still prevails.

Therefore while these health indicators provide

an overview of the health and education status of
adolescents, they are not entirely indicative of their
actual quality of life and simply provide a point of
discussion that enables an understanding of the
importance of the policies reviewed.

© Ollivier Girard / UNFPA

11
 Table 1. DHS and Epidemiologic Survey Data+
Burkina Faso Ghana Niger Nigeria Sierra Leone
2010 2015 2012 2013 2013

Sexual and Reproductive Health

Median age of sexual debut 17.7 18.4 15.9 17.6 16.4

Female (25-49 years)** (20-49 years) (25-49 years)

Median age of sexual debut 20.7 19.9 23.6 21.1 18.0

Male (25-49 years) (20-49 years) (25-49 years)

Median age of marriage 17.8 20.7 15.7 18.1 18.0

Female (ndhs 2013)

Median age of marriage 25.5 26.4 24.6 27.2 (NDHS 25.0

Male 2013 Nigerian
Men age
30-49 years)
(NDHS 2013)

Sexual activity amongst girls 24.5% 14% 38% 33.1%

aged 15-19 years* 29.1%

Adolescent pregnancy 24.0% 14.2% 40.0% 23% (mothers 28% of

aged 15-19 years or pregnant adolescents 15-19
with first baby) years have begun
(NDHS 2013) child bearing

Total Fertility Rate (TFR) 6.0 4.2 7.6 5.5 4.9

aged 15-49 years

Contraception Prevalence Rate 14% 27% 8.0% 16% 16%

Polygamous marriage prevalence 42% — 36% -1/3 35% (age

Female (NDHS 2013) 15-49 years)

Percentage of girls age 15-19 31.5% 6.4% 61% 28.8 18.8%

currently married

Percentage of women aged 10% 4.9% 28% 17.3% 12.5%

20-24 years who got married
before age 15 years*

Percentage of women aged 52% 20.7% 76.3% 42.8% 38.9%

20-24 years who got married
before age 18 years*

Percentage of women aged 2.4% 1.8% 9.9% 5.9% 9.7%

20-24 years who gave birth
before age 15 years*

Percentage of women aged 28.2% 16.9% 48.2% 29.1% 36.4%

20-24 years who gave birth
before age 18 years*

Modern contraception use 6.2% 16.7% 5.9% 1.2% 20.7%

among female adolescents
aged 15-19 years

12
 Burkina Faso Ghana Niger Nigeria Sierra Leone
2010 2015 2012 2013 2013

HIV

HIV Prevalence adolescents >0.07%^ 1.5 female >0.01% 15-19 years: 1.5 female
aged 15 – 19 years 0.2 male 2.9% (NARHS 0.7 male
2012)

Percentage of females 29% 28.7% 11.2% 26.5% 28.8%

aged 15-19 years who have
comprehensive Knowledge
of HIV/AIDS*

Education

Received no formal education: 74% 19% 73% 40.4% 51%

Female*

Received no formal education: 59% 9% 60% 29.5% 41%

Male*

Percentage of girls aged 74% 54.5% 84.8% 51% 42.3%

15-19 years currently
not attending school*

Percentage of boys aged 66.9% 47.3% 73% 37.4% 31.9%

15-19 years currently
not attending school*

+ All data obtained from either DHS or UNFPA databases, if data were unavailable it is indicated in the box with a – sign.

** All data based upon reproductive aged 15-49 years unless otherwise noted.

* Data obtained from UNFPA’s Adolescents and Youth Dashboard; all other data obtained from most recent
Demographic and Health Survey from the country.

^ Prevalence listed for individuals aged 15-24 years: DHS Burkina Faso, 2010.

~ Data obtained from SLDHSBS 2009.

13
© Ollivier Girard / UNFPA
 Chapter 1:
Child Marriage
Policies and Laws

Policies and Strategies on Child Marriage

Among the five countries covered in this study, Niger and Sierra Leone do not have policies or
only Burkina Faso has a specific national strategy strategies specifically on child marriage. However,
on child marriage. Its government recently Niger has a National Strategy on Prevention of
detailed a national strategy for the prevention Adolescent Pregnancies that calls for a reduction of
and elimination of child marriage in the country child marriages from 76.3% in 2012 to 60% in 2020.
(2016 – 2025) and an action plan for the In addition, it also seeks to increase the modern
implementation of these plans for 2016 to 2018. contraceptive prevalence rate among adolescents
These efforts are within the government’s overall from 5.9% in 2012 to 15% in 2020. The strategy
development strategy for 2025, based on the outlines four approaches:
Accelerated Growth Strategy and Sustainable
Development (SCADD), the Code of Individuals • Advocacy to create a legislative environment and
and the Family (CPF) and National Policy for regulatory frameworks that are favourable to the
Social Protection (PNPS). This national strategy protection of girls.
takes a multisectoral approach and calls for the
development of an action plan including other • Communication to change behaviours and social
ministries, civil society and financial and technical norms.
partners.
• Strengthening family planning services to
Ghana and Nigeria are in the process of adolescents.
developing child marriage strategies or policies in
2016. In Ghana, the development process is being • Coordination and monitoring and evaluation.
facilitated by a consultant with oversight from a
National Core Working Group and coordinated by In addition, there are several other policies and
the Child Marriage Unit of the Ministry of Gender, strategies in Niger that primarily focus on adolescents
Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP). but also cover protection against child marriage.

15
 Laws on Age
of Marriage

Sierra Leone is currently in the process Only Ghana has unequivocal laws that clearly
of developing an adolescent health and prohibit marriages below the age of 18 years for
development policy as well as updating and both men and women. These laws are enshrined
reviewing the Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, in the 1992 Constitution as well as the Children’s
Child and Adolescent Health Strategy, and the Act of 1998. In Sierra Leone, while the Child Rights
National Strategy for the Reduction of Teenage Act sets the age of marriage at 18 years, there is
Pregnancy. There is an ongoing advocacy a legal loophole where girls and boys could get
process to integrate child marriage in the married below that age with parental consent,
Teenage Pregnancy Strategy. according to the 2009 Customary Marriage and
Divorce Act. Section2 (2) of the Registration of
Customary Marriage states that any child who is
below the age of 18 years can be married with the
approval of their parents. The conditions for which
a marriage can be seen as legal in the Principal
act states: If the personal law of the either of the
parties to the proposed marriage is customary law,
that the following conditions have been fulfilled-

1. That neither of the parties is a party to the

subsisting marriage;

2. if the woman is under 18 years of age, that at

least one of her parents or guardians has given
his or her consent

Countries that have laws that allow marriages

below the age of 18 years for girls, such as Burkina
Faso and Niger, have strong ongoing advocacy
processes that are pushing for revisions of these
laws, in line with international standards.

For example, in Burkina Faso, the law on child

marriage sets the legal age of marriage at 17
years for girls; this is in direct contradiction to the
Inter-Ministerial Strategy on Child Marriage which
sets it at 18 years, as well as the international
conventions and charters such as the Convention
on the Rights of Children and the African Union
Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child
(1990) which state that children are considered
those under the age of 18 years.4 In addition, the
law allows marriages for girls between the ages
of 15 to 17 years if they and their families make an
appeal to the civil courts.5

4
African Union Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child 1990; http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/africa/afchild.htm
5
Article 238, Code for Individuals and Family (Civil) 1989; SNPEME 2016.

16
Niger has a similarly complex and tangled legal In Nigeria, under the 2003 Child Rights Act,
environment pertaining to child marriage. Article children are defined as any individual under the
144 of the civil code forbids marriage below the age of 18 years. Children cannot marry nor can
age of 18 years for boys and below the age of they consent to engaging in sexual activities.
15 years for girls. This code was last modified in The Act explicitly states that the betrothal and
1962 and is still in force today. However, there marriage of children is prohibited. However, as
are Islamic and customary laws that are also Nigeria operates on a pluralistic legal system,
in place concerning child marriage. There is marriage is allowed for children under the age of
legal inconsistency about which law supersedes 18 years for states who do not observe federal
the others. Article 51 of the Law on Judicial law. Some northern states in Nigeria subscribe to
organization states that customary law should be Sharia law, or some version of it, which does not
followed with regard to marriages; however, Article prohibit child marriage. This can create a clash of
81 of the 1999 Constitution says that that the laws and principles but the federal government
national law, and not customary law, should govern will rarely intervene. Enforcement of federal law
family relations. In any case, both the national law in these states is virtually impossible, given the
and the customary law on child marriage do not states’ choice on ratification of these laws. In
align with international standards. some cases, federal lobbying can provide some
influence in policy adoption but this rarely takes
The Federal Republic of Nigeria is made up of 36 place.
states and a Federal Capital Territory (FCT) located
in Abuja. The constitution affirms that Nigeria is
one indivisible sovereign state, whose constituent
units are bound together by a federal arrangement.
However, Nigeria operates on a plural legal system
that creates contradictions and inconsistencies
through the application of statutory, customary
and Sharia laws. The existing laws consist of:

• The constitution (which is the supreme law) and

its provisions which have binding force on all
authorities and persons throughout the Federal
Republic of Nigeria.

• Legislation - each of the 36 states and the FCT,

Abuja, have their own laws.

• English law.

• Customary law (ethnic, non-Islamic) that

applies to the members of the different ethnic
groups and is particularly dominant in the area
of personal and family relations like marriage,
divorce, guardianship and custody of children
and succession.

• Islamic or Sharia law, which is considered

customary law in the south but exists separately
in the north (often codified).

17
© UNFPA Liberia
 Chapter 2:
Adolescent and
Youth Health Policies
and Laws, including
Adolescent Sexual and
Reproductive Health

Policies and Strategies on Adolescent

and Youth Health
All countries have a policy and/or strategy According to the strategy, the primary SRH issues
specifically on adolescent and youth health. In affecting adolescent and youth include:
2015, Burkina Faso implemented the five-year
National Strategy for Youth Health (NSYH) that • Unwanted pregnancy and clandestine abortions.
incorporates reproductive health, including maternal
and child heath, within its framework. The NSYH • Unprotected and early sexual relations.
also notes that multiple other national strategies,
including those fighting malaria, blindness, HIV • Alcohol and drug consumption.
and oral health, all include adolescents within
their frameworks. Within the NSYH, youth are • HIV and Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs).
classified as young people aged 15 to 24 years,
and adolescents are classified as those in the age • Violence.
bracket of 15 to 19 years. The strategy also covers
younger children, from six years onwards.

19
 It is noted that limited utilization and promotion closely spaced pregnancies due to a lack of health
of modern contraception in health services education.7 The National Strategic Plan for the
targeting youth and adolescents enhance negative Prevention of Adolescent Pregnancy (NSPAP)
reproductive health outcomes. recognized the cause of early pregnancy as not
specifically a health problem, but a multi-sectoral
In the NSYH, it indicates that 10 ministries, including issue that spans education, traditions, religious
the Ministries of Youth and Employment, Education practices, and health and gender norms. The
and Literacy and Secondary Education, are involved NSPAP covers a period of 2015 to 2020 in line
in implementing the strategy. One major form of with government development objectives and the
health service delivery for adolescents in Burkina is new Sustainable Development Goals.
through the public school system. Public schools
have health units (sante scolaire et universitaire) In Sierra Leone, from 2013 to 2015, the Ministry
that are run by government public health officials of Health and Sanitation (MoHS) implemented
with standards for care determined by the NSYH a National Strategy for the Reduction of Teenage
issues listed above. Pregnancy. Among the strategy’s outputs are an
improved policy and legal environment to protect
In Ghana, there is an Adolescent Reproductive adolescents and young people’s rights; improved
Health Policy (2000)6, currently under review access to quality SRH; and comprehensive
that includes services such as family planning as age appropriate information and education
a key factor in population growth and national to adolescents. Additionally, the Sierra Leone
development. The new policy is called the Sexual Reproductive, Newborn and Child Health Strategy
and Reproductive Health Policy for young people (2011 to 2015) identified main barriers to the
and covers 2016 to 2034. The Population Policy uptake of adolescent SRH services.
review lags behind the ARH policy review but is
also progressing. It also looks ahead to 2034. Based on these findings,
These are outlined in the current Ghana Shared the first objective in the strategy
Growth and Development Agenda II: 2014-2017
was to ensure the provision of
(NDPC 2014). Guiding documents in the
implementation of the National Family Planning comprehensive, adolescent friendly,
Programme include the National Population sexual reproductive health services.
Policy; the Reproductive Health Service Policy
and Standard; the 2000 Adolescent Reproductive The strategies under this objective were:
Health Policy; the Reproductive Health Commodity
Security Strategy (2011-2016); the Draft National • To ensure the implementation of an adolescent
Condom and Lubricant Strategy and Market and young people’s health and development
Segmentation Analysis for Family Planning, among strategic plan.
others (MoH 2011) (DHS 2014).
• Ensure Adolescent/Youth-Friendly Health
As noted in the Niger National Strategy for the Services (AYFHS) are delivered.
Prevention of Adolescent Pregnancy, low socio-
economic status of women contributes to low • Sensitize the community on adolescent
levels of education (73% of women in Niger reproductive health issues.
have received no formal education) and limited
literacy. This increases the likelihood of increased • Strengthen research into adolescents’ and young
adolescent pregnancies, early pregnancy or people’s issues.

6
Please note that Ghana is in the process of finalizing a new Adolescent Reproductive Health Policy in 2016 but it fell outside the purview of this review.
7
National Strategic Plan to Prevention Adolescent Pregnancy, Niger, 2015

20
In April 2015, the Ministry of Education published Nigeria also had an adolescent pregnancy
a position paper indicating that girls who are strategy (2013 to 2015) contained in the National
visibly pregnant are not allowed in school. Youth Sexual and Reproductive Health strategy
The Government of Sierra Leone, however, with a 2011 to 2015 timeframe. The current
expressed commitment to the special needs of status of this strategy is unknown. Embedded
adolescent girls who have become pregnant during within the National Health Policy is a National
the Ebola crisis and called for an appropriate Adolescent Health Policy published in 1995 thereby
response. The Ministry of Education officially opening the health sector to adolescent-specific
indicated that the following services needed to be programming including topics such as sexual
provided to pregnant schoolgirls during the time behaviour and reproductive health (National
of their pregnancy: Adolescent Health Policy 1995).

• Special modalities to continue their education on While the issue of consent is not addressed, the
core subjects, so that they can be reintegrated policy indicates:“[i] In view of the increasing
into formal education after pregnancy. problems associated with adolescent sexuality and
teenage pregnancies in Nigeria, it is considered
• Provision of health information and access to appropriate that sexually active adolescents who
maternal and neonatal health services, Gender seek contraceptive services shall be counselled
Based Violence (GBV) and psychosocial and served where appropriate.” This wording could
support.8 be construed to mean sexually active adolescents
do not need parental consent (National Family
While adolescent pregnancy, low rates of Planning/Reproductive Health Policy Guidelines
contraception, high rates of child marriage and and Standards of Practice). It is left to the providers
limited education were not new challenges in to consent to provide these services to adolescents
Sierra Leone, the initiatives that were in place (e.g. and young people – this provider bias can be
National Secretariat for the Reduction of Teenage inhibitory to healthcare access for young people.
Pregnancy [NRSTP]), had begun to lapse since
2013 and the Ebola crisis. The Ebola Virus Disease Although policies stipulate equal access for
(EVD) adversely impacted service provision on adolescents, in reality, cultural barriers exist in
education, Sexual Reproductive Health (SRH) easily accessing contraceptives, which leaves the
to adolescents in Sierra Leone. Schools were decision of whether to supply contraceptives to
closed nationwide between July 2014 and April sexually active adolescents to the discretion of the
2015. The lack of access to formal schooling and provider. Many providers impose parental consent
Adolescent Sexual Reproductive Health (ASRH) restrictions based on their provider preference.9
services amidst persistent sexual and gender- Additionally, the 2007 adolescent health policy
based violence situations contributed to increased includes adolescent-friendly health services,
teenage pregnancy especially among adolescent however the availability and accessibility to youth-
girls. More recently, there has been a renewed friendly health services remains critically low.10
focus on preventing teenage pregnancies, school
dropouts and child marriages.

8
A Rapid Assessment of Pregnant Adolescent Girls, 2015 (Yet to be Published)
9
Ezihe Loretta Ahanonu, Attitudes of Healthcare Providers towards Providing Contraceptives for Unmarried Adolescents in Ibadan, Nigeria, Journal of
Family & Reproductive Health 8.1 (2014): 33–40.
10
USAID Deliver Project, Contraceptive Security in Nigeria: Assessing Strengths and Weaknesses, September 2009.

21
 Legal Frameworks for Adolescent
and Youth Health

While there are several national laws and legal In Nigeria, the minimum age of consent for
frameworks governing adolescent and youth accessing SRH services is unclear. Formal
access to health services, including SRH services, legislature such as the Childs Right Act and
the overall finding is that every country has a Sexual Offenses Act dictates that the national age
complex and often contradictory legal framework of consent is 18 years and there are no age- or
regarding SRH. This can create an environment parity-related restrictions that formally limit access
wherein adolescents are reluctant to access to contraceptives. Similarly, in Sierra Leone, the
services - or are denied services when they age of consent for accessing family planning and
seek them. This section covers two key types of contraception services is unclear and there is no
legislation that impacts adolescent and youth SRH: policy that explicitly guarantees adolescents full
access to these services.
• Laws governing adolescents’ access to SRH
services, including HIV services. In terms of HIV-specific legislation, the legal
contexts in all countries are complex due to the
• Sexual consent laws. often-contradictory penal laws and health policy
strategies. According to UNAIDS, international
standards consider requiring parental consent
Laws regarding adolescent access for HIV counselling and testing as against best
to SRH, including HIV, services practice for adolescent HIV health policy. Even
so, countries such as Burkina Faso, Ghana,
In all countries, with the exception of Ghana, there Nigeria and Sierra Leone have laws that state
is no clear legislation that clarifies the age at which that adolescents under the age of 18 years cannot
an adolescent can access family planning services. access HIV counselling and testing services
None of the countries have specific frameworks without parental or guardian consent. Of these
that outline which services an adolescent may countries, three provide legal ‘exceptions’ to this
receive without consent, leaving the decision to minimum age.
provider discretion. In these circumstances, a
medical practitioner may institute the necessary Ghana has an HIV law (popularly known as the
care and intervention in the best interest of the Ghana AIDS Commission Act) that provides a
adolescent, but individual bias may come into play legal framework for the delivery of HIV health
- or they may err on the side of caution and deny services in the country. The policies generated
the services requested. from these laws indicate that while medical
consent for a child, a person under the age
The 2014 National Reproductive Health Policy of 18 years, must be obtained through a legal
and Standards in Ghana say that adolescents guardian, parent, partner, or next of kin, there
can access family planning services, though no are circumstances where consent is unnecessary
specific age is mentioned. Burkina Faso has because the child is between the ages of 16 and
a Reproductive Health Law (n ° 2005-049/ 18 years. These circumstances are described
AN) that guarantees the right to reproductive as “impracticable or undesirable to obtain this
health, including teenagers and children, without consent” but they fail to expand upon the specific
discrimination (Article 8). The Government of circumstances, leaving the consent determination
Niger passed a Reproductive Health Law in 2006 to the provider’s discretion. This is similar to the
that guaranteed the right of every human being case in Nigeria that provides exceptions for testing
access to reproductive and general health care. below the age of 18 years in situations where the
This act authorized the use of contraceptives in the adolescent shows maturity and understanding
country (Article 15), with the important caveat that of the process and potential results - again
contraceptives could only be provided to ‘legally leaving the service provision choice to health-
married’ couples. provider discretion and possible bias.

22
In Sierra Leone, a pregnant or married adolescent either ‘puberty’, 15 years, 18 years or marriage for
– or an adolescent who is already a parent – can females. There is no age of consent for males. In
access HIV counselling and testing without Southern Nigerian states, the age of consent is
parental consent. 16 years for females and 14 years for males.
In the FCT of Abuja, the age of sexual consent is
Niger passed a law regarding HIV that includes 14 years for males and females.11 The penal code
the protection of individuals living with HIV and and Child Rights Act make sexual activities with a
basic human right of access to HIV testing and child under the age of consent a criminal offence;
treatment in 2007. However, the law states that however, ambiguities of the law can create legal
test results for a minor should be given to a parent loopholes in the justice system. Chapter 21 of the
or guardian. This is further complicated by the fact Nigeria Criminal Code states that having sex with
that there is no fixed definition of a minor in Niger, a girl under the age of 13 years is a felonious act
as minors are considered under the age of 21 years but having sex with a girl between 13 and 16 years
by penal law and under the age of 18 years by the of age is a misdemeanor, regardless of whether
signed Convention of the Rights of Children (UN the other partner is an adolescent.12
and African Union).
In Burkina Faso, children under the age of 15 years
cannot consent to sexual relations and any sexual
Sexual consent laws act is considered an indecent assault - even if the
other child is also under 15 years. In Ghana, the
Sexual consent laws define the minimum age at sexual age of consent is 16 years according to the
which an adolescent can consent to sex. While the Children’s Act, 1998.
aim of the law is primarily protective and is usually
outlined in laws relating to rape or sexual assault, Of the five countries, the age of sexual consent
it can have a huge impact on adolescents’ ability is the lowest in Niger - 13 years of age (Penal
or desire to seek out SRH services. In particular, Code, Article 278). Despite this, it is extremely
sexual consent laws that set the age of consent difficult to obtain accurate data regarding the
high, such as Sierra Leone (18 years) and Nigeria sexual lives of adolescents under the age of
(18 years according to federal law), can create 15 years, as most research and data collection
situations where adolescents below the age of focuses on SRH among individuals 15 years and
18 years are reluctant to access services, or are older. Therefore, the low age of sexual consent
denied services by healthcare providers due to this in Niger creates a data vacuum for health and
law. policy professionals to understand the overall
sexual health of adolescents, appropriate access to
Nigeria’s federal system creates a complex health services and educational needs of sexually-
legal environment on sexual consent. In states active adolescents in the country. Research
that have adopted the Child Rights Act or the among adolescents is also a complex subject and
Sexual Offenses Act, the age of sexual consent obtaining ethics approval within a country or with
for males and females is 18 years. In Northern international review boards is extremely difficult
Nigeria, the age of sexual consent varies by state for children under the age of 18 years without
and the predominant religion. The age can be parental consent.

11
Nigeria Sexual and Reproductive Rights Law
12
http://www.nigeria-law.org/Criminal%20Code%20Act-PartIII-IV.htm#Chapter 21

23
© Vincent Tremeau / UNFPA
 Chapter 3:
Other Health Policies
that have an impact
on Adolescent and
Youth Health

There are several other policies and strategies related to

health, including SRH and HIV, in each country that cover
general populations but also have specific sections or
provisions for adolescents and youth.

25
 In Burkina Faso, in addition to the policy on Nigeria published a National Reproductive
Adolescent Health, there are two other key health Health Policy and Strategy in 2001 (it is currently
policies that cover adolescents and youth. under review) with the overall goal to create an
These are the National Strategy for Reproductive enabling environment for appropriate action, and
Health (2010) and the Policy for Family Planning to provide the necessary impetus and guidance
(ended in 2015 and currently under revision). to national and local initiatives. The strategy
outlined targets from 2001 to 2006. This strategy
In Ghana, the Ghana Ministry of Health (MOH) was to be updated every five years, however,
advocates and formulates national health policy, more recent versions were unavailable for this
and is responsible for monitoring and evaluating analysis. Nigeria also had a National Sexual and
progress towards its targeted outcomes. Reproductive Health Policy from 2011 to 2015; it
Ghana Health Service (GHS) is an autonomous is unclear if this policy still exists.
government agency allied with the MOH as its
technical arm and responsible for service delivery In Niger, the overall policy environment towards
(GHS Reproductive Health Strategic Plan). ASRH is covered in the Economic and Social
In 2007, the Ghana Health Service and the MoH Development Plan of the country. This plan
developed a National Strategic Direction for clearly shows the government’s commitment to:
improving reproductive and neonatal health in
Ghana for the timeframe of 2007 to 2011. •• Improve the health of all people, particularly
vulnerable groups.
Ghana also developed a National Health Policy
titled Creating Wealth through Health in 2007. •• Reduce the disparities in accessing health
One of the measures in this policy is to develop and social services.
specific programmes for improving the health
and health care delivery in various population •• Protect young people against various health
subgroups, including adolescents (Creating Wealth risks.
through Health, 2007). The Ministry of Youth and
Sports (MoYS) is tasked with leading campaigns The Declaration of the General Policy of the
relevant to their ministry to promote abstinence Government in 2011 paved the way to universal
and safe-sex practices. Currently, the National access to social services particularly for the poor,
Youth Authority under the MoYS implements many of whom are adolescents.
some SRH interventions on a small scale, mainly
with support from UNFPA. Sierra Leone reviewed its 1993 National Health
Policy in 2002 (DHS 2013). In 2010, Sierra
Objective 4.3.7 of the 1994 National Population Leone published its first National Health Sector
Policy seeks to educate the youth on population Strategic Plan 2010 to 2015 (NHSSP) which was
matters which directly affects them such as sexual designed to provide the framework to guide the
relationships, fertility regulation, adolescent health, MoHS and its partners in the achievement of
marriage and childbearing, in order to guide them the Millennium Development Goals.
towards responsible parenthood and small family
sizes (Adolescent Reproductive Health Policy,
2000). This policy is currently under review.

26
Key areas to be strengthened under this plan
included13:

•• Access to health services.

•• Quality of health services.

•• Equity of health services.

•• Efficiency of service delivery.

•• Inclusiveness.

In line with the government’s Agenda for Change

and Health Sector Strategic Plan, the Free
Healthcare Initiative (FHI) was introduced in 2010
to provide free health care services for pregnant
women, lactating mothers, and children under
5 years. FHI focuses on an essential package of
free health care services to ensure a significant
improvement in maternal and child health (DHS
2013). FHI makes no mention of minimum
ages of consent, nor does it specifically mention
adolescents, but it is plausible that this will be a
good resource for pregnant adolescents.

The Reproductive, Newborn and Child Health

(RNCH) strategy 2011 to 2015 aimed to promote
the provision of adolescent and youth- friendly
health services (AYFHS); however, adolescent SRH
needs are not specifically addressed, and there
are currently no specific MoHS health training or
activities designed to address the specific health
needs of adolescents (RNCH 2011-2015).

13
DHS 2013

© Ollivier Girard / UNFPA

27
© Caitlin Healy / UNFPA Senegal
 Chapter 4:
Education Policies
and Strategies

All countries have national strategies and policies interventions for training parents, community and
on education. Most of these promote mandatory religious leaders. It is not clear if reintegration
basic education and some also include provisions of pregnant girls is included in this strategy but
on state subsidies and support for school uniforms, it is a recommendation for best practices for
textbooks and other associated schooling costs. girls’ education and prevention of child marriage
This review includes information on whether the programmes. The purpose is to eliminate gender
policies also cover health education, specifically inequalities within the education system and the
sexuality education and/or HIV-specific education, strategy has funding from the Government of
as well as whether there is any specific clause Burkina Faso and other international actors.14
of re-integration of pregnant girls or adolescent
mothers in schools. Burkina Faso is the only In Ghana, article 38(2) of the constitution states
country with a specific strategy on girls’ education. that the government, through the Ministry of
Education (MoE), shall provide Free Compulsory
Burkina Faso has a National Strategy for the Universal Basic Education (FCUBE). Accordingly,
Acceleration of Girls’ Education (2012 to 2021) the MoE launched FCUBE in September 1995
which was developed by the Ministry of Education with the main policy goal being to provide every
and Literacy, supported by UNICEF and other school-age child in Ghana the opportunity to
international actors, in 2012. The plan includes receive quality basic education. Additionally, as
specific targets that aim at creating enabling part of FCUBE, the government supplies all public
environments within the education sector in order basic education schools with textbooks and other
to retain and promote girls in schools. educational supplies including exercise books, free
school uniforms and meals. Senior high schools
This is a comprehensive strategy including teacher are also provided with textbook requirements.
and administrative training; elimination of barriers However, school attendance becomes expensive
for young girls (both married and unmarried) to at senior high level because students must
attend school and community level education purchase their own uniforms and school supplies.

14
UNICEF Annual Report, Burkina Faso, 2012

29
 The Policy Goals for Education Strategic Plan Sexual Health education in formal education
2010 to 2020 policy are: is included in the Ministry of Education standard
curriculum in Niger. However, sexual health
• Increase access. education was not provided till recently, and
considering the extremely low rates of education
• Improve quality. in the country, particularly for girls (roughly
73 percent of girls received no formal education)
• Extend and improve Technical and Vocational it is arguable this formal education policy covers
Education and Training (TVET). a limited proportion of adolescents in Niger.

• Promote health/sanitation in institutions. The National Policy on Education in Nigeria

was published in 1977; the most recent policy
• Improve planning and management. appears to be 2004 which was further revised in
2013. This policy is the guideline for the effective
• Expand science and technology education. administration and implementation of education
at the three governing levels (Federal, State and
• Improve academic quality and research. Local Governments).

• Expand preschool education. The Compulsory Free Basic Education Act was
passed in 2004, ruling that children are legally
• Promote programmes to prevent HIV&AIDS. obliged to attend primary and secondary school
and that every government in Nigeria shall provide
• Provide equal opportunities for girls. free, compulsory and basic education (Compulsory
Free Basic Education Act 2004). The Government
The ESP 2010 -2020 provided an overview of of Nigeria established the Universal Basic Education
national expenditure for the Education Strategic (UBE) Programme - a nine-year compulsory, basic
Plan in previous years, and promisingly, national educational programme of six years of primary
spending for education reached 10 percent of education and three years of junior secondary
public expenditure as a percentage of GDP in the education. The programme is free but families must
country. While the total spending may not be still pay for school uniforms and textbooks. The
enough to cover all the needs in the country, this is Child Rights Act, 2003, which protects the right to
an encouraging statistic that shows a growth rate education, has been adopted in 23 states in Nigeria.
in expenditure over time, as well as an important
percentage of the overall GDP of the country In 2000, Nigeria adopted the National Sexuality
reinvested in the education of youth. Education Curriculum (Family Life Health
Education), which mandates the provision
Discussions are ongoing in Ghana on harmonizing of sexuality education, including HIV, in
programmes on sexuality education using recently upper primary (4th to 6th grade) and junior
developed national guidance. The previous secondary (7th to 9th grade) school. However,
ESP (2003-2015) only included a HIV-specific implementation is based on state adoption making
programme while the new one includes education implementation sporadic and inconsistent: some
on broader ASRH issues including HIV. topics are removed while others are watered down
and often lose their original meaning. It is reported
Niger has a National Education Sector Policy that in the national curriculum information on
guaranteeing free education and requiring condoms and contraception is prohibited and
compulsory education until the age of 16 years. topics are purely disease prevention/HIV focused
Niger also has a National HIV/AIDS Education and abstinence based. It is clear that allowing
Sector Policy; however, the National HIV/AIDS states to choose whether to adopt the curriculum
Education Sector Strategy and Action Plan is part results in an inconsistent sexual education
of its National AIDS strategy. nationally (UNFPA 2014).

30
Sierra Leone established the National Commission
for Basic Education in 1993 and two years later
established a New Education Policy for Sierra
Leone. This policy is currently under review. In
1997, Sierra Leone developed the Education Master
Plan (World Bank 2007).

Under the 2004 Education Act, basic education

in Sierra Leone is legally required for all children
for six years at primary level and three years
in junior secondary education. This act also
mandated compulsory education as free for all
children at primary school and at junior secondary
school for girls in the northern and eastern areas
(Education Act 2004). But again, although the
government abolished school fees, education
is still unaffordable for many because schools
impose a variety of charges on their students such
as book fees, uniforms requirements and other
administrative fees.

© UNFPA WCARO
31
© Ollivier Girard / UNFPA
 Chapter 5:
Youth Policies, including
Youth Employment

None of the countries in this review have a Burkina Faso is mandated to create an enabling
specific strategy or policy on youth employment. environment for youth employment, cultural
However, all of them have a policy or action plan development and youth associations. Youth
on adolescents and youth that covers employment, targeted under this policy are in the age range of
in addition to education and other aspects of 15 to 35 years.
adolescent and youth development. This section
will cover youth policies in each country with a Employment promotion and job creation in Ghana
particular focus on the youth employment element. is an important objective in its Shared Growth and
Development Agenda (GSGDA II) 2014 to 2017
In Burkina Faso, a new national youth policy which talks of “leverage[ing] Ghana’s natural
covering the period 2015 to 2024 has been resource endowments, agriculture potentials and
adopted. It covers youth health, employment, human resource base for accelerated economic
civism and capacity development in policy growth and job creation through value addition,
dialogue. It was written under the leadership of the especially manufacturing” (National Employment
Ministry of Youth through a very long and large Policy 2014).
participatory process that included several others
ministries, national and international NGOs, civil The Ministry of Youth and Sports (MoYS)
society organizations, youth-led organizations and released a National Youth Policy in 2010 with the
many other stakeholders. theme Towards an Empowered Youth, Impacting
Positively on National Development. Priority areas
The National Youth Policy creates a policy included, but were not limited to, education and
framework for youth employment and cultural skills training, employment, gender mainstreaming
development and provides the structure in and health and HIV/AIDS. Ghana’s 2014 National
which the Ministry of Youth Empowerment Employment Policy (NEP) targets youth aged
(MYE) engages with youth and works with other 15 to 35 years. The NEP adopts an intersectoral
ministries, notably the Ministries of Education and and integrated approach toward promoting
Health, to facilitate youth-friendly environments employment and creating jobs, thereby creating
and empower youth within the Burkinabe society. a favourable environment not only for target
The Ministry of Youth and Employment in audiences but also for Ghanaians at large.

33
 Research informing the policy identified high The key goals are:
percentages of youth unemployment and
underemployment. It aimed at providing a • Young girls and boys have access, without
framework for improved economic status including discrimination, to learning and development
promoting a national system of apprenticeship. opportunities to acquire specific skills.
This primarily focused on further preparing youth
and those who leave school early to acquire • To strengthen the commitment and participation
proficiency in numerous areas of skills, industry, of young people in the promotion of citizenship,
and craftsmanship (NEP 2014). citizenship and the democratic exercise of social
and political leadership at all levels.
The Ministry of Youth in Niger developed a
National Policy for Youth in 2015 that requires a • Better integration of young people into the
programme to create an enabling environment economy.
for youth employment; continued learning and
skills development; economic opportunities • Improved protection of young people to enable
and integration of youth perspectives in public them to lead healthy lives.
discourse. In this policy, the ministry considers
youth to be aged between 15 and 34 years. • Young people are integrated into the design,
The policy creates an enabling environment with implementation and monitoring of global
some key best practices such as educational and sectoral development strategies and are
resources; continuing education and skill-based instruments of development planning at the
education; budgets for income generating activities regional and municipal levels.
and protection activity for youth. Protection
activities include increasing access to health • Strengthened sectoral coordination capabilities
services, reinforcing the health system for service and steering the implementation of the NPC.
delivery of adolescent SRH and other health-
related access and education subjects. There is also a Plan of Action for Adolescents that
covers the period 2015 to 2018. This plan is based
In Niger, the National Youth Policy outlines on several interlinked strategies:
strategies to ensure that young people are
more integrated into society, have economic • Promotion of behaviours and social norms that
opportunities, are politically engaged and can enable the full development of an adolescent.
participate fully in the development of the country.
• Increased access by adolescents to services in
order to reduce their vulnerability.

• Improvement of social services so that they

effectively meet the needs of young people.

• Creation of a favourable policy and legislative

environment to protect and strengthen
adolescent rights.

• Improvement in the production and use of data

on adolescents.

34
In Nigeria, the National Youth Policy is currently There are plans to review the policy and make it
in its second edition. It is the guiding policy for more in tune with current youth realities (including
youth health and development issues and identifies specific targeting of youth in humanitarian
the priorities, directions and practical support settings) and to make the document more user-
that the government should be providing for the friendly. At the time of writing, this review was
development of its young men and women (age scheduled to take place in September 2016.
18 to 35 years) although it also has references to
the pre-youth age group. It identifies 14 categorical Sierra Leone established a National Employment
cohorts of youth as target beneficiaries: Policy in 2014 and a National Youth Programme
2014-2018. Prior to this, the government largely
• Students in secondary and tertiary institutions. depended upon outdated policies from the 1960s.
In 2003, GoSL launched a revised National Youth
• Out of school youth. Policy (NYP) and established a Youth Commission
to promote opportunities for youth advancement.
• Unemployed and underemployed youth. It was revised again in 2014. The NYP has the
potential to significantly improve the youth sector
• Youth with disabilities. by strengthening collaboration between youth
organisations and youth servicing agencies,
• Youth engaged in crime and delinquency. both international and local NGOs, and all line
ministries that have youth-related activities. The
• Female youth. policy defines youth as any Sierra Leonean (female
and male) within the 15 to 35 years age bracket
• Gifted youth. (NYP 2003).

• Rural youth. The 2016 National Youth Service Act was also
enacted to create job opportunities for young
• Young people living in the street. people. Largely due to the war, many young people
do not have formal education or skills with only
• Young men and women living with HIV/AIDS. 20 percent of 15 to 35-year-olds having finished
primary school.
• Youth engaged in and affected by armed
conflict situations. Unemployment among urban youth is extremely
high, with a 2012 UNDP report indicating that
• Illiterate youth. 60 percent of youth (15 to 35 years) in Sierra
Leone were unemployed15 which places Sierra
• Sex workers. Leone’s youth unemployment rate at the highest
in West Africa. There are fewer opportunities in
• Youth in Diaspora. formal employment for youths in the country, and
young women are further disadvantaged based
It has an accompanying action plan. Challenges on gender disparities and have less access to paid
of the current policy include poor dissemination employment and formal employment.16
of its contents to the subnational levels and poor
operationalization of the policy to actionable activities.

15
http://www.sl.undp.org/content/dam/sierraleone/docs/projectdocuments/povreduction/sl_status_ofthe_youth_report2012FINAL.pdf
16
http://dhsprogram.com/pubs/pdf/sr171/sr171.pdf (DHS, 2008)

35
© Ollivier Girard / UNFPA
 Key Findings
and
Recommendations

West and Central Africa’s (WCA) population is The creation of an enabling policy and legal
predominantly young. More than 64 percent are environment that protects and promotes the
under the age of 24 years. Young people are a health, well-being, education and employment
tremendous resource for the region – but only of young people, particularly adolescent girls,
with the right investments in their education, is an important part of ensuring that the full
health, skills and empowerment. potential of young people can be realized.
Policies should seek to enable and empower
young people and be supported by legislation
that upholds their rights.

64%
under the age
of 24 years

37
 Key Findings

The review covers policy and legal frameworks include measures to address the high levels of
for child marriage and adolescent SRH; broader adolescent pregnancy. While several policies
health policies and strategies that have provisions support adolescent access to SRH services, they
or sections pertaining to adolescents and youth; often do not provide any specific provisions on
education policies and youth and youth employment the accessibility and quality of these services or
policies. The legal analysis reviewed laws pertaining training of health care providers. In many cases,
to child marriage (age of marriage including the legal ambiguities surrounding age of access
parental consent exceptions); adolescents’ access to contraceptives and other SRH services mean
to SRH services including contraceptives and HIV that the final decisions may rest in the hands
counselling and testing and sexual consent laws. of the healthcare providers creating a situation
of healthcare provider bias in provision of these
The review found that while there were examples services. The review included a legal analysis
of enabling and supportive policies and laws, most of sexual consent laws. While these laws are
countries had a complex – and often contradictory primarily protective in nature, in cases where the
– set of laws, policies and strategies pertaining legal age to sexual consent is very high (18 years
to adolescents and youth. These often acted as and above), it can act as a barrier to adolescents
significant barriers to their access and uptake of seeking SRH services. Both Sierra Leone and
health services, education and employment and Nigeria (where 18 years is the age of sexual
could increase their vulnerability to child marriage. consent) have situations where adolescents
The findings are: below the age of 18 years are reluctant to access
services, or are denied services by healthcare
• Child Marriage: Child marriage is an issue providers due to this law.
across all the countries reviewed, though the
prevalence varies considerably with Niger having • Education Policies and Strategies: All
the highest prevalence rate in the world (76.3%) countries in this review have an education policy
and Ghana having a relatively lower prevalence or strategy that stated that basic education is
rate (20.7%). Only one of the five countries compulsory and free. But most countries did not
covered in this review has a national strategy to cover additional associated costs of schooling
end child marriage – Burkina Faso – while Ghana such as school uniforms, textbooks etc. that
and Nigeria are in the process of developing can act as a significant barrier to education
national strategies/policies on this issue. Both access, especially among poorer communities
Niger and Sierra Leone address the issue of child – and this can often disproportionately impact
marriage, to some extent, in their national policies girls. It is worth noting that Burkina Faso has a
on adolescent pregnancy. Far less promising is the specific strategy on accelerating girls’ education.
legal environment related to child marriage across The review also examined whether education
the five countries. Only Ghana has unequivocal policies included provisions for sexuality
legislation that sets the age of marriage at 18 education or health education more broadly.
years for both boys and girls, with no exceptions. All countries included some mention of health
The other countries have the legal age set lower, education, either with a focus on sexual health,
or have legal loopholes through which marriages family health or HIV.
are allowed below the age of 18 years with
parental consent. There are several advocacy • Youth Policies, including Youth
movements gathering pace in these countries to Employment Policies: While none of the
increase the minimum age of marriage and close countries had a specific policy or strategy on
the loopholes. youth employment, all countries had a youth
policy, strategy or action plan that covered
• Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive youth employment in depth, with a focus on job
Health: Every country has a policy, strategy creation, training for youth, and intersectoral
or action plan on adolescent health that also responses to address the issue.
covers adolescent SRH. Most of these policies

38
Recommendations

While there are several promising practices that • Laws governing age of consent to sex and age of
countries can build on, this review found that consent to SRH services should be harmonized.
there is a complex – and often contradictory – Age of consent to sex should be set at an
set of policies and legislation in place across age that recognizes that many young people
the five countries covered in this study. The commence sexual activity during adolescence.
recommendations to address this are:
• Education policies should cover both primary
• Child marriage policies should include a and secondary education, with a special focus
comprehensive set of policy approaches to on girls’ education, and remove barriers to
accelerate actions to end child marriage and to education through removal of school fees,
protect adolescent girls at risk of marriage, as subsidizing of school uniforms and textbooks
well as cover adolescent girls who are already and provision of school meals if possible. They
married. should also include provisions for the inclusion
of sexuality education programmes in schools.
• Ensure that child marriage laws are aligned
with international standards as enshrined in the • Countries should develop policies pertaining to
Convention on the Rights of the Child as well as youth employment that includes clear guidance
the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare and concrete measures on how to equip young
of the Child. This means that the minimum age people with education, skills and training for the
of marriage is set at 18 years for both sexes and marketplace; reduce youth unemployment and
does not include any exceptions with parental or underemployment and improve quality of jobs
guardian consent. for youth.

• Governments should develop or revise policies • Policies and strategies should be costed and
and enact legislation that protects young funded in order to support their implementation.
people’s rights to the highest attainable Laws should be implemented through support
standard of health. SRH services should be through the appropriate judicial systems.
aligned with the standards for youth- and
adolescent-friendly services outlined by
the WHO (given in Annex II). Policies and
legislation should allow adolescents’ access to
SRH and HIV services, including contraceptive
services and HIV counselling and testing. All
countries in the review are signatories to the
Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC).
The CRC asks governments to recognize the
evolving capacity of adolescents to make
independent decisions regarding their health.
This calls for a review and overhaul of policies
and legislation that do not allow adolescents to
access SRH services without the consent of their
parents or guardians.

39
© Tagaza Djibo / UNFPA
Annex I:
Table of Policies Reviewed per Country
BURKINA FASO

Policies, Strategies and Documents Reviewed Date

Background Demographic Health Survey 2010

documents
2011 UNICEF Humanitarian Action for Children; Building Resilience 2011

UNICEF Annual Report 2012 for Burkina Faso, WCARO 2012

Situational Analysis of Poverty and Vulnerability of Children December

and Women in Burkina Faso 2010

Legal Penal Code 1996

Code for Individuals and the Family 1989

African Union Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child 1990

Convention on the Rights of the Child (UN) 1990

HIV Law 2008

Health National Policy for Health

National Policy and Norms for Reproductive Health May 2010

National Strategy for Youth Health 2015 – 2020

National Strategy for the Prevention and Elimination of Child Marriage 2016 – 2025

Action Plan for the Three Year Strategy for the National Prevention 2016 – 2019
and Elimination of Child Marriage in Burkina Faso

National Policy HIV 2008

National Plan for Relaunching Family Planning 2013 – 2015

Youth and September

National Policy for Youth
2008
Youth Employment
National Policy for Youth – includes employment and education topics 2015

Education National Strategy for the Acceleration of Girls’ Education 2012 – 2021

41
 GHANA

Policies, Strategies and Documents Reviewed Date

Background Demographic Health Survey 2014

documents

Legal Penal Code 1960

Constitution of the Republic of Ghana 1992

Juvenile Justice Act 2003

African Union Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child 1990

Convention on the Rights of the Child UN 1990

Children’s Act 1998

Health National Health Policy: Creating Wealth through Health 2007

(Currently under review)

Adolescent Reproductive Health Policy 2000

(Currently under review)

National HIV/AIDS and STI Policy 2013

(In final stages of review)

Reproductive Health Strategic Plan DRAFT 2012

2007 – 2011
Ghana Health Service Reproductive Health Strategic Plan (Replaced by MAF)

Millennium Development Goals Acceleration Framework (MAF) 2011 – 2015

(Soon to be reviewed)

Youth National Youth Policy 2010

Education Education Strategic Plan 2010 – 2020

Employment National Employment Policy 2014

Gender Domestic Violence Act 2007

Gender National Strategic Framework on ending Child Marriage Under

development

42
NIGER

Policies, Strategies and Documents Reviewed Date

Background Demographic Health Survey 2013

documents
2011 UNICEF Humanitarian Action for Children; building resilience 2011

Framework for Protection of Children 2010

Juvenile Protection Policy No defined dates

National Civil Registration Policy No defined dates

National Policy of Social Protection 2013-2015

3N Initiative for agricultural sustainability 2012

Legal Penal Code 1961

updated 2004

African Union Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child 1990

Convention on the Rights of Children (UN) 1990

Health National Policy for the Prevention of Adolescent Pregnancy 2015 – 2020

National Policy on Gender 2008

Youth and Youth National Policy for Youth 2015

Employment

43
 NIGERIA

Policies, Strategies and Documents Reviewed Date

Background
documents Demographic Health Survey 2013

Legal Penal Code 1960

2003 Child Rights Act Factsheet 2007

Universal Basic Education Act 2004

Criminal Code Act 1990

Health National Policy on HIV/AIDS 2009

National HIV Strategy for Adolescents and Young People 2016 – 2020

National Reproductive Health Policy and Strategy 2001

Revised National Health Policy 2004

National Adolescent Health Policy 1995

National Policy on the Health and Development of Adolescents 2007

and Young People in Nigeria

National Reproductive Health Strategic Framework 2002 – 2006

National Strategic Framework on the Health & Development of 2007 – 2011

Adolescents & Young People in Nigeria

National Youth Sexual and Reproductive Health Strategy 2011 – 2015

National Family Planning / Reproductive Health Policy Guidelines 2005

and Standards of Practice

National RH/FP Clinical Service Protocol Revised 2015

Employment National Employment Policy Unknown

44
SIERRA LEONE

Policies, Strategies and Documents Reviewed Date

Background
documents Demographic Health Survey 2013

Legal Penal Code 1965

Child Rights Act 2007

Education Act 2004

The National HIV and AIDS Commission Act 2011

Health Reproductive, Newborn and Child Health Strategy 2011 – 2015

(currently being revised to be the Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn,
Child and Adolescent Health Strategy)

The National Strategic Plan on HIV/AIDS 2016 – 2020

National Strategy for the Reduction of Teen Pregnancy 2013 – 2015

(currently under review)

National Health Sector Strategic Plan 2010 – 2015

Youth National Youth Policy 2003

45
 Annex II:
WHO –UNAIDS Global Standards for
Quality Health Care Services for Adolescents

Standard 1. The health facility implements systems to ensure that adolescents are knowledgeable about
Adolescents’ their own health and they know where and when to obtain health services.
health literacy

Standard 2. The health facility implements systems to ensure that parents, guardians and other community
Community members and community organizations recognize the value of providing health services to
Support adolescents and support such provision and the utilization of services by adolescents.

Standard 3. The health facility provides a package of information, counselling, diagnostic, treatment
Appropriate and care services that fulfills the needs of all adolescents. Services are provided i
package of n the facility and through referral linkages and outreach.
services

Standard 4. Healthcare providers demonstrate the technical competence required to provide effective
Providers’ health services to adolescents. Both healthcare providers and support staff respect, protect
competencies and fulfill adolescents’ rights to information, privacy, confidentiality, nondiscrimination,
nonjudgmental attitude and respect.

Standard 5. The health facility has convenient operating hours, a welcoming and clean environment
Facility and maintains privacy and confidentiality. It has the equipment, medicines, supplies
characteristics and technology needed to ensure effective service provision to adolescents.

Standard 6. The health facility provides quality services to all adolescents irrespective of their ability
Equity and to pay, age, sex, marital status, education level, ethnic origin, sexual orientation or
nondiscrimination other characteristics.

Standard 7. The health facility collects, analyses and uses data on service utilization and quality of care,
Data and quality disaggregated by age and sex, to support quality improvement. Health facility staff are
improvement supported to participate in continuous quality improvement.

Standard 8. Adolescents are involved in the planning, monitoring and evaluation of health services
Adolescents’ and in decisions regarding their own care, as well as in certain appropriate aspects
participation of service provision.

46
Acknowledgements

The UNFPA West and Central Africa Regional Office

(WCARO) commissioned this review within the
framework of the UNFPA-UNICEF Joint Programme on
Child Marriage. It was authored by Erin Papworth and
Nicolle Nelson of Avery Franklin Consulting. Anandita
Philipose, Adolescent and Youth Specialist at WCARO,
provided overall coordination support and technical
guidance for its conceptualization and development.
The Team Leader for Adolescents and Youth Unit
and senior management at WCARO provided overall
guidance.

A core team of UNFPA country colleagues informed

and shaped the individual country inputs. These include
Nene Barry, Edith Ouedraogo, Julien Ouedraogo and Ivan
Ovando-lacroux from the Burkina Faso country office;
Robert Mensah, Selina Owusu and Adjoa Yenyi from the
Ghana country office; Nora Le Jean and Issa Sadou from
the Niger country office; Zubaida Abubakar and Sabrina
Pestilli from the Nigeria country office, and Betty Alpha,
Sonia Gilroy and Fiona Kaikai from the Sierra Leone
country office. Further reviews and inputs were received
from the following WCARO colleagues: Habibatou
Gologo, Meike Keldenich, Nelson Muffuh, Beatrice
Mutali and Fatou Sarr.

Autors: Erin Papworth and Nicolle Nelson,

Avery Franklin Consulting

47
Delivering a world where
every pregnancy is wanted
every childbirth is safe and
every young person’s
potential is fulfilled

United Nations Population Fund

UNFPA WCARO - West and Central Africa Regional Office
Immeuble Wolle Ndiaye, Almadies
P.O. Box: 21090 Dakar-Ponty SENEGAL
wcaro.unfpa.org