Kilifi girls: Teen pregnancies in the region a pandemic
Mary Mbuche,12, a Class Seven pupil at Masindeni Primary School, during a GBV forum at Garashi Ward in Magarini Sub-county. She said teenage pregnancies in Kilifi and Mombasa counties was becoming a pandemic.
What you need to know:
- Girls in Kilifi and Mombasa counties have said teenage pregnancies in Kilifi and Mombasa counties was rampant and becoming a pandemic.
- The girls also called on the government to sensitize parents on violence against women and girls.
Girls in Kilifi and Mombasa counties have called on the county and national government to safeguard them against sexual gender-based violence.
The girls said teenage pregnancies in Kilifi and Mombasa counties was rampant and becoming a pandemic.
Speaking at a forum in Garashi in Magarini Sub-county, Mary Mbuche 12, a Class Seven pupil at Masindeni Primary School said the government should avail dignity kits in schools to curb period poverty.
“Women and girls are an important part of the society. There is no doubt that the world is indeed a better place because of their presence. However, women and girls still bear the brunt of societal ills,” she said.
The forum was organised by ActionAid in Magarini and Sauti ya wanawake, a community-based organisation in Kilifi and Mombasa.
Ms Mbuche said period poverty has led to many girls being lured into sex to get money for sanitary towels.
She said this has seen an increase teenage pregnancies coupled with a high rate of school dropout and early marriages. According to Ms Mbuche, the two counties are becoming unsafe for the girls.
Poverty levels
Girls in Adu and Garashi wards, the remote areas of the Magarini Sub-county and the Mwakirunge dumpsite in Mombasa counties are most affected due to the high poverty levels.
Magarini is one of the areas affected by drought, annually.
Families depend on charcoal and firewood production for a livelihood. Others depend on the salt firm in the area to earn a living.
The girls also called on the government to sensitize parents on violence against women and girls.
“Unless there is stern action, the girls will continue to suffer unless we heighten their protection to elevate them from every form of vulnerability.
“The effects are grave and include school dropouts and the girls who are left with almost no one to help them advocate against harmful cultural practices that foster early marriages,” she added.
The teenager called on the government to avail free water to reduce insecurity and the distance girls have to travel daily, to search for water. This, she said, would also cut on the money spent on water for daily consumption.
She also wants the government to set up rescue centres to support survivors of gender-based violence and impose a heavy fine of a minimum of Sh2 million on perpetrators of sexual and gender-based violence.
Ms Mbuche said the government should also ensure rape and defilement cases are completed within six months.
The girls’ call to action comes as the public waits for the findings from the task force on teenage pregnancy.
The taskforce formed by Kilifi Governor Amason Kingi in May 2019, was mandated to find the cause of rampant cases of early pregnancies among school girls.
The move came after Kilifi County recorded 17,000 cases of pregnant school girls.
The taskforce was supposed to submit the findings to the governor in December of the same year for action.
