Table 2. Key African Union legal and policy instruments that could support the advancement of adolescent SRH services under UHC.

Nature of instrument	Year of adoption	Focus	Features pertaining to adolescent SRHR	Strengths and limitations
Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa
Enforceable treaty	2003	Human rights of women	Elimination of discrimination against women; economic and social welfare rights, health and reproductive rights	Recognises the right to health of women including sexual and reproductive rights. Mentions the right to control fertility, the right to decide whether to have children or not. State parties should “protect the reproductive rights of women by authorising medical abortion in cases of sexual assault, rape, incest, and where the continued pregnancy endangers the mental and physical health of the mother or the life of the mother or the foetus”.
Continental Policy Framework on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (CPF)
Policy	2006	Guidance on implementation of ICPD Plan of Action (PoA) and Millennium Development Goals	Includes: maternal mortality and morbidity; contraceptive use and family planning services; unsafe abortion; adolescent reproductive health	Draws on the ICPD PoA and specifically addresses adolescent SRH and unsafe abortion.
Revised Maputo Plan of Action 2016–2030 (MPoA)
Policy	2016	MPoA 2016–2030 designed to operationalise the CPF	Actions include: instituting health legislation and policies for improved access to Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health services; investing in SRHR needs of adolescents, youth and vulnerable and marginalised populations	Emphasises the need to ensure adolescents have access to SRH services in accordance with ICPD PoA.