Sexuality, lifestyles, and the lures of modernity: Participatory rural appraisal (PRA) of female adolescents in the niger delta region of Nigeria

Using interviews, focus group discussions, and case histories, the lived experiences of female adolescents in oil-producing communities of the Niger, Delta region show the negative outcomes of crude oil explorations and petroleum refinery. For many female adolescents, petroleum activities translate into multiple sexual partners, teenage pregnancy and illegal abortion, high exposure to STDs including HIV/AIDS, increasing rate of high school drop-out, and impoverishment due to high unemployment, and low education. Strategies recommended to improve the lived experiences of female adolescents include the protection and defense of the sexual and reproductive rights of female adolescents, which require policies and programs to improve education about adolescents’ sexuality, encourage schooling, and reduce adolescents’ vulnerability.