The objectives of this project are to assess the acceptability of enrolling young adolescents into studies on reproductive health, including acceptability of the informed consent process and biomedical procedures (self-administered vaginal swabs), and to characterize the vaginal environment of young adolescent girls in Mwanza, Tanzania around the time of their sexual debut.
The first phase of the study will consist of qualitative research into the acceptability of research on reproductive health among minors and the informed consent process, including issues of confidentiality. In the second phase, a cross-sectional study will be conducted among 400 in-school girls in Mwanza, half of whom have not yet passed their sexual debut.