Democratic South Africa at 25 – a conceptual framework and narrative review of the social and structural determinants of adolescent health

The paucity of conceptual frameworks which take into account the social and structural determinants of adolescent health in South Africa, and their dynamic interaction across the micro, meso and macro levels, nested in global contexts, limits the ability of policy makers and practitioners, as well as researchers, to optimally identify their role and contribution to adolescent health. Seizing this window of opportunity, this paper seeks to conceptualise the contextual factors that shape adolescent health, by presenting a conceptual framework and narrative review of existing multi-disciplinary literature which describes the social and structural determinants of adolescent health at micro, meso and macro levels, as well as how these intersect with and compound other with axes of power and inequality. In doing so it aims to provide greater understanding of the implications of these contextual determinants shaping adolescent health for South African health systems and policy in the SDG era.