Experiences and acceptability of adolescent and youth friendly services programmes among the adolescents in Africa: A systematic review

AYFS were established to address the unique and often unmet health needs of adolescents across Africa, particularly within primary healthcare settings. These services were developed to improve accessibility, confidentiality, and quality of care for adolescents by offering sexual and reproductive health (SRH) education, contraception counselling, HIV testing, mental health support, and STI screening. Despite the availability of these services, utilization remained low due to persistent barriers such as stigma, poor provider attitudes, lack of privacy, and limited adolescent engagement. Evidence from South Africa and other African countries highlighted ongoing challenges in ensuring that AYFS were acceptable, youth-centred, and aligned with adolescents’ expectations. Although several studies explored AYFS implementation, most focused on specific regions or health domains, leaving a gap in consolidated evidence across the continent. This systematic review was therefore designed to explore the experiences and acceptability of AYFS among adolescents in Africa, aiming to provide a comprehensive understanding of the factors influencing the use and perception of these services.