guideline

WHO launched the new WHO Guideline “Preventing early pregnancy and poor reproductive outcomes among adolescents in low- and middle-income countries”.

Adolescent pregnancy and child marriage are intertwined issues that hinder the realisation of sexual and reproductive health and rights of adolescents, and particularly of adolescent girls. Recent data show that first births to girls aged 17 years and younger, in 54 developing countries with data, occur within marriage or cohabiting unions.

Adolescent pregnancy remains a critical global issue, especially in low- and middle-income countries, where 21 million girls aged 15–19 become pregnant each year, half unintentionally. Child marriage, restrictive societal gender norms and stereotypes, and limited access to education and employment perpetuate cycles of early marriage and childbearing. 

Access to sexual and reproductive health services and comprehensive sexuality education remains limited. Many adolescents lack essential information on puberty, contraception, and sexual health. Barriers such as stigma, legal restrictions, and provider biases hinder access to contraception, with persistent inequities across regions and groups. 

The objectives of this guideline are the same as those of the 2011 edition, namely to provide evidence-based normative guidance on interventions to improve adolescent morbidity and mortality by reducing the chances of early pregnancy and its resulting poor health outcomes. The specific objectives of the guideline were to:

1. identify effective interventions to prevent early pregnancy by influencing factors such as early marriage, coerced sex, unsafe abortion, access to contraceptives and access to maternal health services by adolescents; and
2. provide an analytical framework for policy-makers and programme managers to use when selecting evidence-based interventions to prevent early pregnancy and negative health outcomes when they occur that are most appropriate for the needs of their countries and context.

The recommendations and best practice statements described in this document aim to enable evidence-based decision-making with respect to preventing early pregnancy and poor reproductive outcomes among adolescents in low- and middle-income country contexts.

You can find the recording of the guideline launch webinar here, access to the guideline in English here, and the executive summary in French here and Spanish here.