The girl child and reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health

Overview

Afocus on the health of the girl child is essential for reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health efforts.a Girls under the age of 15 are five times more likely than older women to die in childbirth. Infants are 60% more likely to die in their first year of life if their mothers are under 18. Among female adolescents, maternal conditions are responsible for 15% of all deaths.

In Africa (excluding north Africa), women under the age of 20 have the least access to skilled birth attendance, highest rates of hospitalization due to unsafe abortion, and lowest access to reproductive and sexual health services. Of the 2.1 million adolescents living with HIV (most of them in Africa), 62 per cent are adolescent girls. Maternal morbidity – including obstetric fistula – is also higher amongst adolescents due to complications from labor and delivery.