April 29 (IPS) – The Ministry of Health in Kenya recently reported that there are 45,754 the number of teen pregnancies between January and February of this year – that’s 700 per day. In total, at least 2000 of these cases were due to sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), a number that may be lower than it actually is.
Furthermore, weekly, 98 girls were reported to have HIV during the study period.
A former teen mom herself and now a sexual and reproductive health advocate, the disturbing statistics are close to home. As Kenyans, we built and normalized a culture of public outcry over the issues of concern, and soon we moved on.
This must change. We must pay attention to this crisis and address it. The price to pay if current trends continue is too high, as this directly affects the future life of our great Republic.
The effects of teenage pregnancy are often harmful effects, affecting the social and economic aspects of young mothers. Consider that teenage mothers often drop out of school due to stigma and inadequate postpartum support to return to school as new mothers.
Disruptions in education ultimately perpetuate a vicious cycle of economic dependence, often on those who abuse their vulnerability. There are also associated health risks such as infections and obstetric fistulas among others – as well as mental health challenges including anxiety and depression. In addition, adolescents born are more likely to have low birth weight and serious neonatal conditions.
The staggering numbers from earlier this year point to two scenarios. On the one hand, adolescents are engaging in consensual sex between themselves. This may be due to curiosity and the raging hormonal changes that pervade during puberty.
On the other hand, the incidents could point to a gender- and sexual-violence crisis that is perpetuating the country’s teenage pregnancy crisis. For both scenarios, Kenya has a strong legal and policy framework to avert these crises and must be put to better use.
The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, explicitly guarantees the right to reproductive health care in Article 43. This is working in tandem with National Policy on Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health (2015) adopt an approach to adolescent pregnancy prevention through access to accurate sexual and reproductive health information.
Also, is Back to School Policy provides guidelines on the reintegration of adolescent mothers into school and postpartum. In addition, the Children Act, Sexual Offenses Act and Criminal Code All provide severe punishment for sexual and gender-based violence.
They are supplemented by Kenya School Health Policy which ideally protects learners from the same.
So there are laws, but the problem lies in the implementation – or lack of legislation, of these solid frameworks.
Implementation is also impeded when the responsible person misunderstands or is unaware of their policy. Just recently, one Senior official of the Ministry of Health publicly state that giving birth control to a minor is an offense punishable by up to 20 years in prison.
However, this is not a true representation of the existing legal and policy framework. In his false statement indicating a draft policy has yet to be approved, the ministry official misled millions of Kenyans.
The ongoing crisis shows how important it is for minors to receive accurate information about sexual and reproductive health, products and services to make informed decisions. Opponents argue that this will increase promiscuity among minors.
However, that view is still an incomplete joy because the fact of the matter is that like it or not, teenagers are having sex – a lot. Therefore, they need the freedom to make informed decisions to protect their health and future.
As we move into the month of May dedicated to preventing and ending teenage pregnancy worldwide, the Kenyan government must strive to end a disaster that has persisted for years.
The Ministry of Health must provide harm prevention and mitigation products and services in accordance with the law. The Department of Education must work to standardize and provide comprehensive sex education across the country.
To provoke this, Kenya must reassert the region Minister’s Commitment above Comprehensive Sexual Education and Sexual and Reproductive Health Services for Adolescents and Young Adults in East and South Africa which it signed in 2013 but dodged moving to December 2021.
The Department of Home Affairs and Coordination of the Government of the Country where there is security, must work to investigate and provide evidence for the prosecution of the perpetrators.
The Ministry of Culture must also fight against harmful traditional practices that have led to crises. All these activities require the coordination of relevant ministries with respective mandates on youth issues and gender issues. Until then, the health, lives and future of Kenyan girls are in the balance.
Stephanie Musho is a human rights lawyer and Senior Fellow for New Voices at the Aspen . Institute
© Inter Press Service (2022) – All rights reservedOrigin: Inter Press Service
