It’s a tough time to be a child during the long school break
Children playing in Eastleigh, Nairobi, on March 27,2020.
What you need to know:
- The teenager threatened to take her life if she was not able to terminate the pregnancy.
- My friend Martin is only 15, but he now rides boda bodas to get money for his upkeep.
I live in Matungu in Mumias, Kakamega County. I know some girls in my village, Ejinja, who will not go back to school when they are reopened because they are pregnant.
Recently, we learnt that a 15-year-old girl was desperately looking for a way to get rid of her two months old pregnancy because she was afraid of her harsh father. She said that she was also afraid to face the criticism of friends and villagers.
The teenager threatened to take her life if she was not able to terminate the pregnancy.
There are other girls who have managed to procure abortions, putting their lives at great risk because they went to quacks.
There are many reasons for these early pregnancies, such as poverty. Some homes are not able to provide for the basic needs of their children.
Exploiting children
This has pushed the children to resort to dangerous ways to meet their basic needs.
People who do not have good intentions often take advantage of the children by exploiting them sexually, especially girls.
It is not only girls who are at risk. Young men in the village from poor families have joined the labour market working in jobs for which they are not trained and are ill-prepared.
My friend Martin is only 15, but he now rides boda bodas to get money for his upkeep.
Accident
This is dangerous because Martin has never gone to any driving school to learn how to ride the motorcycle on busy roads. When he rides the bikes, he puts his life and that of the person he is carrying at risk. This could jeopardise his education as he may not be able to go back to school should he get involved in an accident.
My friend may have joined the business out of necessity but there are young men who may not see the need to go back to school when they realise they can earn small money easily.
People in authority have not done anything to help young people and families that are struggling and this has exposed them to many risks.
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