Project profile — Improving Sexual and Reproductive Health and Respect for the Rights of Adolescent Girls in Benin

The expected outcomes for this project include: (1) increased demand for sexual and reproductive health services, especially among adolescent girls; (2) increased supply of adolescent girl-friendly, rights-based sexual and reproductive health services; and (3) governance structures empowered to better coordinate sexual and reproductive health prevention and care, while respecting the rights of adolescent girls.

Results achieved as of the end of the project (March 2022): (1) adolescent girls (15 to 19 years) increased their use of sexually transmitted infections services, from less than 1% at the start to more than 20% at the end of the project; (2) 14,788 adolescent girls (15 to 19 years) accessed sexual and reproductive health care, doubling the project target; (3) gender focal points at all levels of the health pyramid have been established to build the capacity of structures, to promote gender equality and ensure its sustainable integration into supervision, training and coordination activities; (4) 96% of community associations and groups have integrated activities to promote sexual and reproductive health and respect for adolescents' rights; and (5) adolescent-friendly spaces were created in 8 communes. Integrating these spaces into community health centres improves the delivery of sexual and reproductive health services to adolescents by trained providers in an environment that meets their needs (privacy and confidentiality).