- Parents are fully behind the proposals
- If fully implemented, pregnancy among schools girls will reduce drastically
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The new proposals by the Ministry of Education augur well for the fight against teenage pregnancy in our schools.
As parents, we are fully behind the proposals because we feel very bad anytime our school-going daughters are impregnated. Very tough measures should be put in place to change the current scenario.
Kenyans are very weird people; they will not stop engaging in an illegal activity until they see someone paying dearly for it.
I think it will be appropriate and very much in order to ask our girls to disclose those who impregnated them before they are allowed to continue with school. I am very sure there will be a drastic reduction in teenage pregnancies if we begin to know who the culprits are.
As for those culprits who will be under the age of 18, let them go through counseling because that is what they need. It is hard for teenage boys to learn that they are set to become fathers yet still totally dependent on their parents. They need to be advised on how to cope with their new status and how to avoid getting into such situations again.
Since some parents may not be comfortable discussing sex-related topics with their children, it is important that the government finds ways that these children can get some education on the subject. Counseling, of course, has been there but it should be stepped up.
As for adults, the law should be enforced. It is painful for parents when their school-going children fall pregnant, and even more painful when the culprits are adults and sometimes the teachers.
If implicated teachers will be arrested and promptly charged, then you will not see any others risking going to jail.
There should be mechanisms to ensure girls who get pregnant go back to school after giving birth. Kenya introduced a school re-entry policy but there are still those who drop out. This policy is poorly implemented and many heads of schools do not follow up on girls who go home to give birth.
The re-entry policy should also include of supporting young mothers since teenage pregnancy impacts on other areas of a girl’s life.
The chairman National Association of Parents spoke to the Star