Investing in the future: Addressing challenges faced by Africa's young population.
40th Session of the Commission on Population and Development
Nyovani Madise African Population and Health Research Center
1 Outline of Presentation
• Why invest in Africa’s young people?
• Health - RH, HIV and AIDS
• Education
• Education – population - health
2 Why Invest in Young People?
• Human Capital= Population x Health X Education
• Young people have the greatest potential for change.
• Large proportion of population
3 Africa’s Youthful Population fuelled by High Fertility 6
5
4
3
2
1
Number of childrenNumber per woman 0 n a ca a a a c i e ric fr b Asi A Europe rth Ame Oceania SS Afri o Carib n N Lati North America 4 Source: World Population Datasheet 2005. Africa’s0.7 growing young population
0.6
0.5
0.4 15-24 years
0.3 Proportion 0.2 5-14 years
0.1 0-4 years 0
0 0 90 195 196 1970 1980 19 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040 2050
Source: Compiled from UN World Population 5 Prospects, 2006 Revision. The Health of Young People Matters
6 Young People’s Health
• Historically African infants and babies have high disease and mortality burden • Youth have low disease burden BUT increasing due to – Reproductive ill-health – Teen pregnancies – STI infections – HIV and AIDS
7 Sexual behaviour among 15-19 yr-olds
Females Burkina Faso 39
Ghana 21
Malawi 28
Uganda 37
Males Burkina Faso 25
Ghana 10
Malawi 38
Uganda 32
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Never had sexHad sex but not in last 12 monthsHad sex in last 12 months 8 Source: National Surveys of Adolescents 2004 But they are ill-protected against consequences
Unmarried females aged 15-19 years
59 61 70 54 55 60 46 40 39 50 35 40 30 20 10 0
Burkina Faso Ghana Malawi Uganda Current use of any method of contraceptionCondom use in last 3 months
9 Source: National Surveys of Adolescents 2004 Many births to mothers under age 20 were wanted later or not at all: West Africa (DHS data)
Benin 20 0
Burkina Faso 17 1
Côte d'Ivoire 34 1
Ghana 37 21 Birth was wanted later
Guinea 13 1
Mali 16 2 Birth was not wanted at all Mauritania 21 5
Niger 10 1
Nigeria 9 7
Senegal 27 1
Togo 48 4
0 10203040506070 10 (cont’d) East and Southern Africa (DHS data)
Ethiopia 20 11
Eritrea 28 5
Kenya 26 21
Lesotho 8 41
Madagascar 3 11 Birth was Malawi 15 18 wanted later Mozambique 1 23 Namibia 32 34 Birth was not Rwanda 8 wanted at all 15 South Africa 13 66 Uganda 9 23 United Republic of Tanzania 5 15 Zambia 22 17 Zimbabwe 3 37 0 20406080100
11 High HIV prevalence among young Africans
Lesotho Lesotho
Zambia Zambia
Malaw i Malaw i
Kenya Kenya
Tanzania Tanzania
Uganda Uganda Males Females Cameroon Cameroon
Cote d'Ivoire Cote d'Ivoire
Ghana Ghana
Mali Mali
Ethiopia Ethiopia
Burkina Faso Burkina Faso
0102030 0 5 10 15 20 25 30
15-24 Males 25-49 Males 15-24 Females 25-49 Females12 Proportion of deaths to females aged 100% 15-29 years by cause 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 62.4 41.1 46.3 20% 2005 2015 2030 10% 0%
TB HIV/AIDS Other causes
13 Compiled from WHO Burden of Disease Statistics Proportion of deaths to males aged 15-29 years by cause 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 30.5 38.6 20% 25.3 10% 0% 2005 2015 2030
TB HIV/AIDS Other causes
14 Compiled from WHO Burden of Disease Statistics A Synergistic Response for Family Planning and HIV services
• Higher HIV infection rates among young people especially females (3:1 ratio) • More than 25% of girls have started childbearing by age 19 in many African countries)
15 Education Matters
16 Investing in young people: education
Education: has intrinsic value in itself but also key determinant of • Health, • Population change - fertility, mortality, migration • Economic development
17 Young people need opportunities for schooling
• DHS data (2000-2005) on young people aged 6-10 years attending school:
– 59% where there is no free primary education
– 74% where there is free primary education
18 Making education affordable
Primary Attendance, by Wealth. Malawi DES (2000)
1 0.91 0.85 0.9 0.81 0.8 0.73 0.74 0.7 0.6 0.5 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1 0 Lowest Second Middle Fourth Highest 19 Differential in secondary education by wealth status
Secondary Attendance, by Wealth. Malawi DES (2000)
0.25 0.23
0.2
0.15
0.1 0.07 0.06 0.04 0.05 0.03
0 Lowest Second Middle Fourth Highest 20 Gender differences persist especially for secondary education
Ratio of females-to-males in School by 1.20 Age in Selected African Countries
1.00 0.97 0.80 0.79 0.60
0.40
0.20 6-15 year-olds 16-20 year-olds 0.00
21 Source: DHS surveys, 2000-2005 Education matters
• Make education affordable
• Reduce the difference in school attendance between females and males
• Other forms of education – Skills development – Sex education
• Information for behavioural change 22 Education-Population
• Lower fertility
E,g, Average fertility of African woman Without education = XXX Primary =XXX Secondary =XXX
• Longer birth spacing (34 months for secondary educated women compared with 28 for those without education).
23 Education-Health
• Lower child mortality – 7% reduction for infants of primary educated women – 30% for secondary educated
• Better nutritional status
• Lower prevalence of infectious childhood illnesses
• Higher use of health facilities (delivery, immunization, curative services)
24 The Education-Health Link
Use of health facility for delivery, by woman's education level
100 78
80 50 60
40 28
20
0
None Primary Secondary+
25 Summary
Africa’s young people
+ Investments in health +
+ Education
= Human Development
26 Thank you for your attention
27