6: The Unintended Consequences of Intended Pregnancies: Adolescents, Condom Use, and HIV Transmission in Mozambique

Abstract

Unwanted pregnancies can cause social and economic problems for sub- Saharan African youth, but the consequences of intended adolescent pregnancy have gone unremarked. Rarely do studies recognize that youth who want to get pregnant are less likely to practice safe sex, and are therefore at greater risk of contracting sexually transmitted infections (STIs) such as HIV. Youth HIV prevention programs focus on disease risk and only a small number acknowledge that abstinence and condom use can also prevent pregnancy.