July 2003

The Impact of Life Skills Education on
Adolescent Sexual Risk Behaviors

Photo credit: Patrick Coleman/ICCP, provided courtesy of www.infoforhealth.org

In response to the escalating HIV/AIDS epidemic, in 1998 the South African Ministry of Education mandated implementation of a comprehensive life skills education program in all secondary schools by 2005. The Life Skills Programme aims to increase knowledge and develop skills to help youth protect themselves from HIV infection and to safeguard their reproductive health. Although it is too early to assess the long-term impact of this initiative, the phased implementation of life skills education provides an opportunity to assess short-term impact.

To measure the effects of exposure to topics within the life skills curriculum on sexual and reproductive health knowledge and behaviors among youth, the University of Natal-Durban School of Development Studies, Horizons, The Population Council’s Policy Research Division, and Tulane University undertook a prospective study in KwaZulu Natal Province, South Africa, from 1999 to 2001. This summary considers the impact of the life skills program on a population-based sample of youth in two districts in the province. During the same time period, another Horizons study evaluated the impact of the course among ninth-grade students attending schools in KwaZulu Natal where the course was taught.¹

¹See Reddy, P. et al. 2003. "Programming for HIV Prevention in South African Schools," Horizons Research Summary. Washington, D.C.: Population Council.

• Study Site and Sampling Design

• Methods

• Key Findings

• Conclusions and Program Implications

• Insert (Supplement to Research Summary)
  Secondary School Principals Report Dramatic Expansion of Life Skills

• PDF format of summary and insert (139 KB)

About Horizons

Horizons conducts global operations research to improve prevention, care, and support program.

Horizons is implemented by the Population Council under a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Agency for International Development. Horizons is implemented by the Population Council in partnership with the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW), the Program for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH), the International HIV/AIDS Alliance, Tulane University, Family Health International (FHI), and Johns Hopkins University.

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This page updated
19 October 2007