The "Promoting Safe Sex among Adolescents in Tanzania" project aims to reduce the high prevalence of teenage pregnancy, early marriage, HIV, and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among adolescents in Tanzania. Despite numerous public health efforts, many adolescents still lack access to sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services and education.
The baseline evaluation, conducted in 2016, sought to assess the existing SRH knowledge, behaviors, and challenges among adolescents in Dodoma, Iringa, and Mbeya regions.
DAMAX Solutions, in collaboration with BRAC Maendeleo Tanzania, provided mobile HIV Testing and Counseling (HTC) and STI screening services for youth involved in BRAC’s Empowerment and Livelihoods for Adolescents (ELA) program.
The evaluation involved community-based screening of 8,000 adolescents (5,000 females and 3,000 males) aged 15 to 24 to establish the current magnitude of HIV and STIs in these regions. The data collected provided a crucial baseline for measuring the effectiveness of future interventions and helped identify key gaps in SRH knowledge, behavior, and service access.