Launching of Lancet Report in South Africa | Centre for Adolescent Health

Decades of neglect and underinvestment in adolescents by policymakers have led to a devastating effect on the health and wellbeing of the younger generation, a new Lancet report reveals.

While the report does not give statistics on the extent of the problem, it does state that 10- to 24-year-olds across the world are battling wi sa1

th preventable health problems such as HIV and Aids, early pregnancy, mental disorders, injury and violence.

Launching the report in Johannesburg this week, lead author Professor George Patton said countries need to prioritise adolescent health and wellbeing in their policies.

This should start with a comprehensive view of sexual and reproductive health, and include HIV and other infectious diseases. Also of significant interest is attention on nutritional deficiencies, injury and violence, chronic physical health problems, and mental and substance use disorders.

“This generation of young people can transform all our futures. There is no more pressing task in global health than ensuring they have the resources to do so,” Patton said.

Adolescents make up a quarter of the world’s population and 89% of them live in developing countries. In South Africa, 18.5% of the population is made up of adolescents between the ages of 10 and 19.

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