Submission ID 131717
| Issue/Objective | Adolescent sexual and reproductive health (ASRH) in rural northern Nigeria is shaped by a complex interplay of entrenched cultural taboos, fragmented information environments, and inequitable access to appropriate health services. In Bauchi and Gombe States, prevailing norms of silence, shame-based communication, and the widespread perception that SRH knowledge encourages sexual experimentation systematically restrict adolescents' access to accurate, timely, and relevant information. |
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| Methodology/Approach | This article examines how silence around sexuality, selective moral messaging and weak service accessibility shape adolescents' knowledge, attitudes and utilisation of sexual and reproductive health information and services in rural communities of Bauchi and Gombe States. The study draws on qualitative key informant interviews with adolescents and adult stakeholders, including parents, teachers, religiously influenced community actors and health-related informants. The data were analysed thematically using an integrated framework combining the Socio-Ecological Model, Social Norms Theory and the Health Stigma and Discrimination Framework |
| Results | Findings reveal that adolescents commonly obtain information from peers, older siblings, social media, films, informal observation and limited school lessons. These sources are accessible but often incomplete and vulnerable to misinformation. Parent-adolescent communication is generally delayed, indirect and dominated by warnings about abstinence, pregnancy, premarital sex and family honour rather than practical guidance on contraception, consent, STI prevention and confidential care-seeking. School-based sexuality education is present but uneven, narrow and less accessible to out-of-school adolescents. Cultural shame, community surveillance and gendered expectations make sexuality a hidden subject, while fear of judgement weakens adolescents' willingness to seek services |
| Discussion/Conclusion | The findings of this study resonate with and extend existing literature on ASRH barriers in sub-Saharan Africa, while highlighting the distinctive socio-cultural contours of rural north-eastern Nigeria. The entrenched culture of silence around sexuality in Bauchi and Gombe States reflects a broader regional pattern in which religious conservatism and patriarchal norms converge to render frank discussion of SRH socially transgressive not merely for adolescents, but for the adults tasked with their guidance. This silence is not passive; it is actively enforced through community surveillance, shame, and the moral framing of SRH knowledge as an enabler of illicit behaviour rather than a protective resource Advancing ASRH in rural northern Nigeria demands deliberate normative transformation, moving communities from silence and prohibition toward integrated, evidence-informed, and rights-affirming communication that reduces misinformation, strengthens help-seeking behaviour, and enables adolescents to make informed decisions about their sexual and reproductive health. |
| Presenters and Affiliations | Mercy Edejeghwro Centre for Population and Environmental Development Osagie Aitokhuehi Centre for Population and Environmental Development Job Eronmhonsele Centre for Population and Environmental Development Iroroturi Iyamba Centre for Population and Environmental Development Jones Abriku Centre for Population and Environmental Development |
