ANSD reports show high fertility among adolescent Senegalese girls aged 19

According to a survey entitled 'Gender-based violence and women's powers of action – 2019' conducted by the National Agency for Statistics and Demography in partnership with UN-Women, the fertility of Senegalese adolescents aged 19 is high.

"For those who already had a live birth at the time of the survey, adolescent girls aged 19 constitute the highest proportion with 28 percent and those aged 15 the lowest with 1.1 percent", the National Agency for Statistics and Demography (ANSD). This structure also notes that fertility experiences an ascending evolution with age.

Adolescent girls who are pregnant with their first child represent 6.2 percent among young women aged 19 and 4.6 percent, 4.3 percent, 3.4 percent and 0.7 percent respectively among those aged 18, 17 , 16 and 15 years old, APA News noted.

For the 15-17 age group, the ANSD reveals that 5.1 percent have a live birth at the time of its survey, 2.8 percent are pregnant with their first child and 8 percent have already started their reproductive life. "Indeed, they argue, whatever the modality considered, adolescent girls in rural areas are always over-represented compared to their counterparts in urban areas," the survey authors reveal who also estimate that entry into reproductive life is twice as high among adolescent girls in rural areas.

At the time of the survey among adolescent girls aged 15-19, those living in urban areas who have a live birth represent 7.8 percent compared to 17.2 percent for those living in rural areas. Young girls who are pregnant with their first child represent 2.6 percent among adolescent girls in urban areas and 5 percent among their counterparts living in rural areas.

Among adolescent girls who are pregnant with their first child, those living in the regions of Kolda, Matam (North) and Kaffrine have the highest percentages with 7.3 percent, 6.6 percent and 5.9 percent. Of women who started their reproductive life, those with no education level represent 30.1 percent and the others respectively 16.3 percent and 9.5 percent.