More than 2 million adolescents are living with HIV. Although the overall number of HIV-related deaths is down 30% since the peak in 2006 estimates suggest that HIV deaths among adolescents are rising. This increase, which has been predominantly in the WHO African Region.
In sub-Saharan Africa only 10% of young men and 15% of young women aged 15 to 24 are aware of their HIV status.
One of the specific targets of the health Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 3) is that by 2030 there should be an end to the epidemics of AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and neglected tropical diseases, hepatitis, water-borne diseases and other communicable diseases.
Given the high prevalence of HIV in many countries, to achieve this, adolescents will need to be central to control efforts.
Young people need to know how to protect themselves and must have the means to do so.
Other infectious diseases
Thanks to improved childhood vaccination, adolescent deaths and disability from measles have fallen markedly – for example, by 90% in the African Region between 2000 and 2012.
Diarrhoea and lower respiratory tract infections are estimated to be among the top 5 causes of death for 10–19 year olds. These two diseases, together with meningitis, are the top three causes of adolescent death in African low and middle-income countries (LMICs).