As
closer attention is paid to the lives of adolescents in sub-Saharan
Africa, girls are found to be clearly disadvantaged, compared with their
male counterparts. In Burkina Faso 74 percent of girls aged 15-19 cannot
read (INSD and ORC Macro 2004). Burkinabé girls are frequently married at
a young age, and more than one-third of married girls find themselves in
polygamous unions as second or third wives, married to much older men.
Understanding and recognizing girls' realities is an important first step
in planning appropriate and meaningful interventions for them. Girls who
are unmarried, "promised," engaged, or married face different
constraints and merit different program approaches. This report aims to
fill gaps in our knowledge regarding adolescent Burkinabé girls so as
better serve the needs of this most vulnerable population.