Regional and Country Prevalence Estimates of Unsafe Sex Among Adolescents in 68 Low-Income and Middle-Income Countries

• DOI: 10.1007/s10508-024-02861-1
• Publication Date: 2024-04-18T18:02:08Z
• Authors: Janni Leung; Carmen Lim; Habte Belete; Caitlin Mcclure-T...; Shaun Foo; Gary Chung Kai Chan
• Keywords: Sexual intercourse; Unsafe Sex

Prioritizing adolescent health is a public priority to achieve the sustainable development goals, including reducing risk of unsafe sex. Data on sex have remained scarce among adolescents in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs). To estimate prevalence LMICs, we conducted secondary data analysis Global School-based Student Health Surveys 244,863 students aged 13-17 years from 68 across five World Organization regions. The overall ever had was 16.2%. highest lowest regional estimation 30.5% (28.9-32.1) Americas, 28.6% (26.8-30.4) Africa, 10.9% (9.2-12.6) Eastern Mediterranean, 9.6% (8.8-10.5) South-East Asia, and 8.0% (6.8-9.1) Western Pacific. sexual intercourse before age 14 practicing without condom use were 36.5% (34.5-38.5) 32.2% (30.1-34.3) respectively. Findings suggest that current interventions are inadequate promoting uptake safe behaviors an urgent intervention needed.