Factors Associated with Early First Sexual Intercourse (before 16) among Students Currently Aged 14 - 19 in Secondary Schools in Cameroon’s Capital City, Yaoundé and Policy Implications

Early sexual activity, often defined as initiation before 16, is a risky behaviour associated with many negative social and health outcomes. Sexual norms restricting sex till marriage have declined in Cameroon and many other countries, resulting in early initiation of sex. This study seeks to identify and analyse the factors associated with early imitation of sex (before 16) among adolescent secondary school students in Cameroon’s capital city, Yaoundé. The study was carried out using a self-administered questionnaire in which the students were asked questions about their ages at first sex, partners, nature and circumstances of this first sexual encounter. Questions were also asked about some characteristics of the students as well as their parents. About half of the students interviewed had a first sexual encounter before 16 with mean ages at first sex being 14.7 and 16 1 years for boys and girls respectively. The mean age at first sex for both sexes is 15.4 years. It is often unprotected thereby exposing young people to STDS and unwanted pregnancies. A binary logistic regression reveals that the key factors associated with the initiation of sex are the student’s current educational level, the circumstance of first sex (voluntary or forced), the student’s sex, and parents’ educational levels. The policy options dictated by these findings are the promotion of early comprehensive sex education for students even before they reach 10, the equipment of parents especially mothers with skills to help their child retard or practice safe sex and the prevention of the submission of children to rape.