Teenage pregnancy remains a major challenge in Ghana, with 1 in 5 pregnancies in the Adaklu District recorded among teenagers. Poverty, peer pressure, gender norms, and lack of comprehensive sexuality education expose adolescent girls to high risks of early and unplanned pregnancies, unsafe abortions, school dropout, and long-term poverty. To address these challenges, the Girls’ Stand Team launched this project to empower adolescents through Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE), peer education, and community engagement. This project is proudly funded and supported by the Ghana Health Service under the Adolescent Health Ambassadors Challenge
The project was launched at Adaklu Senior High School with outreach into surrounding communities. Using seminars, peer-led groups, and school clubs, the project focused on:
- Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE)
- SRHR Awareness & Advocacy
- Empowerment & Decision-Making Skills
- Dialogue on Gender Norms & Power Dynamics
- Peer Education & Adolescent Health Club Formation
- Poverty: Girls driven into transactional sex to support themselves or their families.
- Peer Pressure: Influence from peers glamorizing sex and material possessions.
- Gender Norms & Power: Sexual harassment and exploitation by peers, older men, and even teachers.
- Lifestyles: Exposure to pornography and risky sexual behaviors fueling early sexual debut.
- Misconceptions: Harmful myths about pregnancy prevention (e.g., alcohol with paracetamol, squatting after sex).
- Unsafe Abortions: Teenage girls resorting to unsafe, secretive abortion practices.
- Low Contraceptive Use: Myths, stigma, and limited access hinder proper use.
- Lack of Parental Guidance: Parents rarely engage adolescents in sex education due to cultural and religious beliefs.
- 582 Students Reached through interactive sessions on teenage pregnancy prevention.
- 10 Peer Educators Trained to lead discussions and mentor their peers.
- Adolescent Health Club Established at Adaklu SHS for continuous awareness and peer support.
- Improved SRHR Awareness on pregnancy prevention, contraception, and dangers of unsafe abortion.
- Youth Engagement: Students openly shared experiences and solutions to teenage pregnancy challenges in their schools and communities.
From the classroom to the community, the project has empowered adolescents in Adaklu to:
- Make informed choices about their sexual and reproductive health.
- Resist peer and social pressures leading to risky behaviors.
- Advocate for safer practices and community support.
- Girls & Women: 481 (372 adolescent girls, 109 young women, )
Boys & Men: 101 (66 adolescent boys, 35 young men,) - Teachers – 3 female
Overall Reach: 585 adolescents & mentors
- 484(Female ) = 82.7%
- 101 (Male) = 17.3%