Kitagwenda: Authorities Call for measures to curb teen pregnancies
Local leaders and stakeholders in Kitagwenda district have called for strong interventions to curb teenage pregnancies that have risen in the district.
The call follows a report indicating a big increase in the number of girls aged between 15 and 19 years who got pregnant in Kitagwenda over the past three years ending June 30, 2022.
A report by United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) indicates that the district recorded 3,420 teen pregnancies over the period, 33 of whom were girls below 15 years old, while 3,387 others ranged from 15 – 19 years of age.
According to the district health officer, Dr. Christine Karungi, Mahyoro sub-county registered the highest number of teen pregnancies with 941 girls between 15 and 19 years of age conceiving over the reporting period. It is followed by Kitagwenda town council and Nyabbani sub-county, which registered 721 and 691 teenage pregnancies, respectively.
At only four, Kicheche sub-county registered the least teenage pregnancies over the period. Buhanda recorded 376 teen pregnancies, Kabujogera 308, and Kanara 379.
Yasin Kezimbira, the District male youth councillor called for strong measures to ensure that girls stay in school, saying this provides them the much-needed safety net.
He said parents who are found to have removed their children from school should also be punished.
Kezimbira called for creation of skilling centres especially in the sub-counties with high teen pregnancy rates, to cater for the young mothers who can’t return to school.
The two officials were speaking during the district’s budget conference.
