Cases of teenage pregnancy and gender-based violence in Kwale county have plummeted in the last two years, according to county health statistics.
Data shows that cases dropped from 35 per cent in 2022 to 15 per cent in January 2024.
It has been a tough journey battling the soaring teenage pregnancies and child marriages, with various stakeholders uniting to fight the vice.
County adolescent and youth health coordinator Mohammed Mwachakure said the drop in cases of teen pregnancy is a great achievement towards efforts made to curb GBV cases in Kwale.
"It's quite a good success that together with stakeholders, we managed to bring down teenage pregnancy numbers," he said.
According to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2014 report, Kwale had the highest rate of sexual exploitation and violence with over 79.2 per cent of women and girls being survivors.
The average pregnancy rate for 10-19 years was 35.44 per cent.
The report further says that forced and child marriages in Kwale are common, with 37.9 per cent of the girls married at the age of 16.
However, Mwachakure said much has been achieved to reverse the trend and improve youth lives, especially girls and young women.
He attributed the success to the work of Connect A Girl project. The project is sponsored through the African Women Development Fund and is implemented by a German non-profit organisation, the Deutsche Stiftung Weltbevölkerung (DSW), in partnership with Sauti Ya Wanawake, a coastal-based women affairs NGO.
The two-year project was launched in 2022. The main focus was to improve sexual reproduction health and to empower women through the acceleration of the implementation of at least two policies for prevention and response to SGBVs.
Mwachakure said since the inception of the project, the lives of many girls and youth have been transformed.
He said the project assisted the county in identifying targeted youth and provided training for capacity building on advocacy, policy making, rights awareness, public participation, budget-making processes and enrolled on empowerment programmes.
"The training package was about improving sexual health, which is a major cause of teen pregnancies and HIV infections among the youth," Mwachakure said.
He said the trained youth were also empowered to reach out to the community members to advocate women's rights and identify possible challenges and solutions to better the lives of the female gender and the entire society.
Mwachakure said the initiative helped a lot in bringing the community on board in the fight against GBVs.
County gender officer Nelly Amoite hailed the programme, saying they are seeing themselves winning the war against GBV, especially teen pregnancy, early marriage, rape and physical abuse.
Amoite said NGOs like DSW, Sauti ya Wanawake and Naya have been pushing for the rights of women and girls and the adoption of the county gender Bill, 2023, which was signed into law in Kwale.
The gender officer said the awareness programmes enabled survivors to come out and share their stories and seek legal procedures for justice.
She said before, most people lacked knowledge of what GBV is and tolerated the injustices.
Amoite said more victims are now reporting GBV cases because they are informed, leading to the reduction of teen pregnancy.
"The results are pleasing, thanks to the strong partnership between the two levels of governments and NGOs," she said.
She said DSW and other partners have been supporting gender-set working groups to address the gender issues for girls, women and PWDs.
The officer said the programme has linked up girls and women to empowerment programmes to improve their lives.
Amoite said the government will continue to work closely with various stakeholders to promote gender-related topics and ensure existing gender laws are implemented.
County children's officer Zaphania Apoko said the project has enlightened the community that women and girls have equal rights to education, health and development.
He said, previously, pregnancy cases among girls aged 10-19 were alarming, but the trend has changed, thanks to the Connect A Girl programme.
Apoko said Kwale is a county where women's empowerment and leadership were previously undermined.
He said through the project, there is increased participation in development among girls and women.
According to KDHS 2014 data, women make up 75 per cent of the agricultural labour force, but only one per cent own land in Kwale.
Apoko said both men and women are now striving to achieve equity in leadership, property ownership and development.
He said those whose rights are violated come forward to report the vices and are willing to give testimonies, unlike before.
County assembly gender and special interest committee member Judy Kengo said the programme, in partnership with other stakeholders and the goodwill of the Kwale government, has helped in the approval and signing into law the gender Bill.
She said DSW assisted in adding insight into bettering the Bill to serve the interest of Kwale people and support GBV victims.
Kengo said at first, it was hard to approve the gender Bill because most people were objecting it for lack of understanding.
"They helped us educate the members of the community because the Bill was meant to undermine and punish men," she said.
DSW project officer Stephen Kibindio said the programme was designed to build the capacity of youth on policy analysis and improve their understanding.
He said the youth went to the grassroots to educate and create awareness on the Bill.
"The training enhanced the adolescent and youth champions on policy analysis, better engagement with policies during public hearings. Ten youth champions participated in public participation at the ward level to voice their peers' proposals on the Kwale SGBV protection Bill 2023," Kibindio said.
He said the enactment of the Bill is crucial as it provides a legal framework for the protection of GBV victims.
Kibindio said the Bill seeks to establish an SGBV board to spearhead the development of policies (County Action Plan for Prevention and Response to Sexual and Gender-Based Violence).
The officer said the Bill will lead to the construction of rescue and recovery centres for SGBV victims in county and subcounty health facilities.
Kibindio said SGBV victims will access medical, security, legal and psychosocial services in a one-stop centre.
