Teen pregnancy crisis calls for new strategies

In light of the reported staggering 23 000 teenage pregnancies in Gauteng, the Advertiser spoke to some of the Boksburg schools and organisations concerned with the welfare of children in the city.

It has been reported that in Gauteng alone, a total of 23 226 teenagers became pregnant between April last year and March. According to the reports, of these 23 226 girls, 934 were 10- to 14-year-olds, while 2976 girls between the ages of 10 and 19 years chose to terminate their pregnancies.

The revealed underage pregnancies seem to point to the fact that there had been hundreds of statutory rape cases.

Local schools pointed out that the reported figures might not be painting the full picture, as the total provided is a product of disclosed pregnancies and terminations reported to health facilities.

Local schools, organisations and healthcare centres weigh in on teenage pregnancy

Oosrand Secondary
Oosrand Secondary School authorities say the levels of teenage and pre-teen pregnancies in schools is worrying, and it is clear that more needs to be done to curb it.

They admitted that, apart from the social and health risk teenage pregnancy poses to both the mother and baby, the trend has a huge impact on the school’s annual academic performance and the level of dropouts.
By August 19, the school had already recorded a total of 20 pregnancies, a slight increase from the 18 girls who fell pregnant the previous year.

The school principal Peter Arendse pointed out teenage pregnancy has been a problem for many years.

“The numbers may have probably escalated because of the economic crisis caused by Covid-19, but we know this is not a new problem.
“It’s particularly rife in the townships where vulnerable young girls who come from poor families make easy prey for older men.”

What can be done to change things?
Arendse said the country needs a new strategy to holistically address learner pregnancies.

“Our school works with other institutions, including government departments, to guide and teach learners about the consequences of teenage pregnancy and preventative measures, as well as their rights in this regard – but
there needs to be a more concerted effort.
“Our interventions usually involve information on sexual health and to avoid risky behaviours and information on the benefits of education.”

However, the principal pointed out that this is not just a problem for schools, but a problem that requires efforts from the entire community, including parents and the other relevant societal institutions.

“We need societal interventions that will help deal with teen pregnancy and all the associated factors, such as broken family structures, economic challenges and children exposed to alcohol and illicit drugs, and numerous risk factors evident in the young people’s families and society at large.

“Most importantly, we need to build better families and communities because our findings into the investigation of the level of teen pregnancy, absenteeism and dropouts point to learning barriers and risk factors associated
with societal values and family structures,” said Arendse.

Reiger Park Secondary School
Reiger Park Secondary School management said pregnancy among young girls remains a nationwide challenge that requires critical efforts to empower girls and educate them about the risk associated with teen pregnancy.

The school believes poverty is one of the main teenage pregnancy associated factors.

Although the school has specific intervention programmes that focus on teaching children about teen pregnancy and preventative measures, the reported numbers still remain unacceptable.
The school recorded 20 pregnancies between January and August 19, and this figure tends to be the normal average the school records per year.

“The life orientation department sources stakeholders to tackle relevant issues at the school, teenage pregnancy being one of them.
Social workers and LoveLife are some of our stakeholders.

Parents’ involvement required
“Parents and guardians should also be actively involved in communicating with their teenagers to aspire to be better,” said teacher Rodney Liebenberg.
“We encourage learners to return to school to secure a better future for themselves so they can ultimately take care of their families and contribute constructively to the economy of the country.

Hoërskool Voortrekker
Hoërskool Voortrekker deputy principal Gerhard Joubert said he didn’t notice a surge in teenage pregnancies at the school.
“We’re probably lucky that it’s not a big problem at our school. We talk about teenage pregnancies regularly in register and life orientation classes and we warn learners of the disadvantages of it,” he said.

Quizzed about the impact on a teenager’s academics if she falls pregnant, Joubert said: “It depends on the learner and if she is willing to take the responsibility to work hard. These learners miss a lot of class and must do school
work at home.”
Hoërskool Dr EG Jansen
Leon de Beer, principal of Hoërskool Dr EG Jansen, said they did not note any increase in teenage pregnancies at his school.
“I’m grateful to say it’s not an issue at our school. I’m not aware of any pregnant learner at the school.”

“Occasionally speakers visit the school to discuss the subject with the learners, however, due to Covid-19 they can’t come to us anymore. I believe the way parents raise their children can also play a role,” he added.
TMH reports rise in teenage mothers
Tambo Memorial Hospital recorded an increase in the number of teenagers who gave birth at the hospital between the period April 2020 and March.

A total of 339 girls gave birth during the aforementioned period. One of these mothers was in the 10-14 age group in January, while the rest were in the 15- to 18-year-old group.

The Advertiser sought comment from Netcare Sunward Park Hospital but was referred to the Department of Health. The department had not responded at the time of going to press.
Kidz Clinic records 85 cases of child rape
Kidz Clinic caters to children who are exhibiting risky sexual behaviour or who have been victims of sexual exploitation.
Ngaa Murombedzi of Kidz Clinic said the issue of teenage pregnancy is a multifaceted and highly complicated matter.
Murombedzi revealed that between January and July, they’ve received 85 cases of child rape, of which seven were statutory. None of the 85 victims had fallen pregnant.

“Teenage pregnancy is not just a child having unprotected sex and falling pregnant. Many things come to the fore, such as emotional and economic needs, peer pressure, need for love, care, protection, misinformation about reproductive health, stigma around condom usage and contraceptives.”

Murombedzi said family structures, as well as cultural and spiritual beliefs, may impact the victim’s decision to seek termination of pregnancy or forcing them to carry babies to term.

“Children aged from 10 years do not have the psychological acumen to understand sex nor the physical capacity to carry a pregnancy without endangering their own lives.
“The teenage pregnancy issue also points to vulnerable children who are falling through the cracks of the reproductive health system,” Murombedzi said.

Kidz Clinic offers free medical and therapeutic intervention and treatment services for abused children. They also provide psycho-social, trauma and competence assessment, trauma debriefing, medical examination and completion of J88 form to accompany police docket and many more.
For more information, contact the centre on 011 892 0404.

Philasande Community Centre
The organisation, which conducts teenage pregnancy awareness workshops, said they’ve dealt with a number of pregnant young women who came to the centre seeking assistance.

Vuyiswa Nkosi, who is a facilitator, said: “Some of the cases we have dealt with include young women who have been taken advantage of by older men in exchange for money. In most cases, the perpetrators are close to the victim, such as a relative or neighbour. We refer such cases to various organisations, such as Famsa.”

Nkosi said they are working with Villa Liza Clinic that assists them with educative pamphlets and condoms.
The workshops are held every Tuesday and Thursday for high school learners, and primary learners on Wednesday.

Reiger Park Crisis Centre
Elaine Appies of the Community Crisis Centre in Reiger Park said among the cases they dealt with recently, were two 16-year-olds, who gave birth in January and July.
“We offer young women the emotional and psychosocial support and then refer them to various organisations for help. We then follow up with the families after the teens have given birth to find out if they are in need of assistance.”

Pregnant teens speak

The Advertiser spoke to two girls, sisters aged 15 and 17, who became pregnant.

The 15-year-old delivered her baby in May after she fell pregnant at the age of 14 while in Grade Seven, and her sister, a Grade Nine, is three months pregnant.

The Windmill Park teens admitted falling pregnant at their age was a mistake.

The 15-year-old said she started dating her 25-year-old boyfriend about two years ago, and they’ve always used protection. However, she became pregnant after the condom they had used burst.

“I didn’t even know I was pregnant until my mother noticed that something was amiss.”

The teenager pointed out that her unemployed boyfriend has disappeared and his whereabouts are unknown. Meanwhile, her sister (17), said she and her boyfriend had been using the “withdrawal method” but failed to do so once.

She said she was very aware of teenage pregnancy because they are being taught about it at school.

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