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Article History

Received: 4 September 2020

Accepted: 6 October 2021

First Online: 18 October 2021

Declarations

:

: The study was approved by College of Medicine Research Ethics Committee (COMREC) reference number P.09/18/2474 and got permission from the Director of Health Services, Lilongwe, District Council, Traditional Authorities, and Community Leaders. Written informed consent was obtained from all key informants. Written assents were obtained from sexually active young adolescents after obtaining written parental/guardian permission. Based on Sect. 4.1 of the National Framework Guidelines for Research in the Social Sciences and Humanities in Malawi [] that permit minors to get treatment for sexually transmitted infection (STI) and contraceptives in the absence of their parents/guardians the researcher was able to convince parents/guardians to allow sexually active adolescents to be left alone to maintain privacy and confidentiality. Participants were allowed to withdraw from the study at any point if they felt uncomfortable. Codes were used instead of names for confidentiality. Interviews were conducted in private rooms/classrooms where participants felt that no one would hear the discussion.

: Not applicable.

: The authors have no competing interests.