• Over 4,000 pregnancies among girls and teens have been reported in the six Coast counties from January to May. The number shot up after the Covid-19 pandemic hit in March and schools closed.
• Many girls forced to trade sex for pads, but if pads are free, it will be more difficult for men to exploit the girl, leading to pregnancies and school dropouts.
The Federation of Women Lawyers has called on the government to scrap taxes on sanitary pads and distribute them for free to all girls and teens.
The aim is to end sex exploitation of girls and increasing cases of pregnancies among minors.
If pads are untaxed and free, men will not be able to easily exploit minors for sex in exchange for pads or money to buy them, Fida said on Sunday.
Many girls are lured into having sex in exchange for sanitary towels as they cannot afford them, making them easy targets for sex predators.
Anne Ireri, Fida's executive director, said the number of pregnancies is high and rising during the Covid-19 pandemic while schools have been closed. They are to reopen in January.
Speaking in Magarini during the ongoing donation of sanitary towels, she said once sanitary pads are free, sexual exploitation will be greatly reduced.
She said Fida is concerned over increasing teen pregnancies and gender-based violence, especially during the pandemic.
''Many poor girls are being lured into early and unprepared sexual activities," she said.
From January through May, more than 4,000 cases of minors' pregnancies have been reported in the six Coast counties. Since schools closed in March because of the pandemic, the numbers have risen sharply.
In that January-May period, Kilifi county was leading with 3,376 pregnancies, followed by Mombasa with 941 cases. Most girls are between ages 10 and 19.
"We have recorded increased complaints at our Mombasa office and we urge the government and community to step up the campaign against gender-based violence, especially during this Covid-19 period," Ireri said.
Ireri advised girls to stay focused and avoid sexual temptation so they can pursue their dreams.
Other factors contributing to early sex are easy access to mobile phones, peer pressure, lack of awareness of reproductive health and beach activities.
"Pregnancies undermine girls' physical and mental state and many feel unworthy," Ireri said.
Fida Coast regional coordinator Ilham Isham said Lamu, Tana Rriver, Kwale and Taita Taveta are leading in early marriages, which are rampant.
Isham said Fida is representing rape and defilement victims by providing free lawyers to help them get justice.
Resident Margaret Luganje of Msumarini village in Magarini said parents are to blame as they have abandoned their parental duties.
Parents should not send girls and teens out to shop at night when many are lured or coerced into having sex, she said.
The Sexual Offences Act provides for prison terms of not less than 20 years for anyone found guilty of defiling a minor aged between 12 and 15 years.
It also states that a person who has sex with minors between the ages of 16 and 18 years should serve a minimum of 15 years.
(Edited by V. Graham)
