Delving into the causes of teenage pregnancy
Lack of parental skills, high level of alcohol consumption, and unavailability of structures to mentor young boys were some of the factors that contributed towards a high teen pregnancy rate
The Health Department took the ‘Denormalising Teenage Pregnancy’ campaign to the Ntabamhlophe area on December 20 and 21 to empower teenagers to make better choices.
On the first day of the campaign, Ms K Naicker from head office gave an overview of the current status. In her presentation, she said that young girls have babies as young as 10 years old these days. She explained that if a child is under 15 years of age, that is rape and has to be reported to social workers and the police.
Estcourt Hospital management then provided insight into the extent of the scourge of teenage pregnancy in Estcourt and zoomed in on statistics for the Ntabamhlophe area.
Non-profit organisations, the Men’s Sector and also the Department of Social Development highlighted contributing factors to the dramatic increase in teenage pregnancy. Among others, these factors are: lack of parental skills, high level of alcohol consumption, and unavailability of structures to mentor young boys.
The second day was dedicated to teenagers and parents to share the challenges which ultimately lead to teenage pregnancy.
Teenagers of different ages were grouped together and tasked with discussing challenges they are faced with at home and in society, and what they can do better to change the situation.
It was such an emotional moment for some of them when they were asked to share challenges they face on a day-to-day basis.
Among other things, teenage girls highlighted that poverty makes them fall prey to ‘blessers’. They also mentioned that they lack much-needed information about sex, since parents do not have open communication with their children.
Teenage boys mentioned that male family members like uncles pressurise them to have girlfriends and they don’t have open communication with them about sex. Parents acknowledged that they have shortcomings which negatively affect their children. They made a commitment to do better, with assistance from programmes available to empower them.
The Department of Health – together with stakeholders, parents and teenagers – agreed on the way forward to decrease teenage pregnancy in the area. The Department of Health made a commitment to visit the Ntabamhlophe area again to monitor progress.
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