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Our story
Ranked 155 out of 162 in the 2019 Gender Inequality Index, the situation for women and
girls in Sierra Leone is among the worst in the world, with the inequalities and vulnerabilities
particularly acute for adolescent girls.
The issue of adolescent fertility is important for both health and social reasons. Children
born to very young mothers are at increased risk of sickness and death.
Teenage mothers are more likely to experience adverse pregnancy outcomes and to be constrained in their ability to pursue educational opportunities than young women who delay childbearing. In Sierra Leone, 21% of women age 15-19 have begun childbearing; 18% have had a live birth, and 4% are pregnant with their first child. 1 Teenagers with a secondary education and those in the highest wealth quintile are less likely to have started childbearing than those with less education and those in the lower quintiles.
Rural teenagers are more likely to start child bearing earlier than urban teenagers, at 29 per cent vs 4 per cent and by district, the proportion of teenagers who have begun childbearing is lowest in Western Area Urban and Falaba (11% each) and highest in Pujehun, Moyamba, and Karene (31% each).
Teenage mothers are more likely to experience adverse pregnancy outcomes and to be constrained in their ability to pursue educational opportunities than young women who delay childbearing. In Sierra Leone, 21% of women age 15-19 have begun childbearing; 18% have had a live birth, and 4% are pregnant with their first child. 1 Teenagers with a secondary education and those in the highest wealth quintile are less likely to have started childbearing than those with less education and those in the lower quintiles.
Rural teenagers are more likely to start child bearing earlier than urban teenagers, at 29 per cent vs 4 per cent and by district, the proportion of teenagers who have begun childbearing is lowest in Western Area Urban and Falaba (11% each) and highest in Pujehun, Moyamba, and Karene (31% each).
OVERALL GOAL AND OBJECTIVE
The overall goal of the strategy is to reduce the adolescent fertility rate to 74 per 1,000*, and the percentage of women aged 20 to 24 years who were first married or in union before the age of 18 to 25 per cent* by 2022.
Ensure that the government and its development partners focus on delivering evidence-based activities over the period 2018-2022
Ensure that one unified country strategy for the reduction of adolescent pregnancy and child marriage is followed by government, development partners, and implementing partners:
Support resource mobilisation efforts:
Provide a framework for tracking performance:
Support the teenage girls today!
Join the movement in creating a positive impact in the lives of teenage girls in Sierra Leone today.
Meet the team
