Transactional sex, defined as sexual relationships outside marriage that are not classified as commercial sex work but involve an expectation of material, financial, or other benefits in exchange for intimacy or companionship, is common among young people in Africa. About 10% of those aged 15-24 have engaged in this exchange in South Africa, 23% in Nigeria, and 25% in Uganda. Researchers recently examined the extent and drivers of transactional sex among pregnant and parenting adolescents in Burkina Faso, Kenya, and Malawi. According to allafrica, the behaviour has been linked to negative consequences such as unintended pregnancy, sexual violence, and HIV infections.

Undernourishment in Africa remains higher than in all other regions and has been rising since 2005. The number of people who go to bed hungry has increased from 178 million in 2005 to 281 million in 2022, equivalent to 19.7% of the continent’s population. According to africa.oxfam.org, 38 percent of the nearly 800 million people affected by hunger globally live in Africa. Sixty-eight percent of underweight adolescent girls and women live in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, and anaemia affects 60 percent of adolescent girls and women in those regions. There is a need to address rising food and nutrition insecurity in Africa amid climate change, conflict, economic shocks, poverty, and inequality.