Thursday, 3 April 2014

‘’TEEN PREGNANCIES’’ A THREAT TO NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

BY Dipulelo Ruth Muzumala Most times girls do not plan to get pregnant but many often find themselves in this situation because of the certain vices like peer pressure and foreign culture. Zambia has a fertility rate as high as 6.2 and mortality still at 591 per 100,000 live births. In 2000,Zambia joined the rest of the world in committing to the millennium development goals to achieve universal ,however the country seems to be taken back with the continuous reports of girls who are either pregnant or have their first child already. Parenthood is one of the leading reasons girl children drop out of schools. According to the statistical bulletin published by the ministry of education, in 2002 there were 3663 teen pregnancies recorded, the number rose to 6528 in 2004. 2007 the figure was reaching 11,391 before reaching a record of 13,634 in 2009. By 2010, the figure was reaching almost 15,000. While Planned Parenthood Association Zambia (PPAZ) records show that at least 17,600 girls drop out of schools every year. More than half teen mothers never complete high school. Early marriages also contribute to the high rate of teen pregnancies, girls are forced to get married to most of the time older gentlemen the young girl has no say and cannot defend themselves against their supposed husband. A concerned parent stressed out in an interview that it is wrong to indulge in sexual activity at a young age and certain vices like the media really influence immoral activity from our young girls, early sexual teaching open children’s minds to the do‘s and don’ts of sex and which prompts children to want to experience sex first hand, she said children do not have a clear perspective of the things they want and what the consequences of having a child can do to their future. When a girl falls in love they believe they would do anything to keep their boyfriends happy, and so when their boyfriends ask for sex they do it. A girl will use sex to get love and the boy will use love to get sex. Career building is needed in schools, it helps you prepare for what you would want for your future, how introducing a child into your life at a young age can delay or destroy completely the life you have planned for your future. Children need to get sensitized on the dangers of early sex more efficiently. Early sex not only brings about pregnancies but it also brings sexually transmitted infections and HIV. The author of this article, is 15 years old and is a member of the Children’s News Agency, Lusaka Bureau cnazambia@gmail.com

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