(Published on Wednesday, January 12, 2022)
By Ritah Mukasa
As schools re-open this week, thousands of girls are returning as mothers. However, despite their predicament, teenage mums are still children with a right to education. RITAH MUKASA spoke to different stakeholders on how teenage mums should be integrated and sustained in school …
Victoria’s Story
During the first lockdown in 2020, Victoria, 17, sat her O’level exams while two months pregnant.
“It was a rough time for me; keeping awake at night to read, but I thank God I passed in second grade. I also gave birth well,” she says.
The father of Victoria’s baby is in Senior Three at a school in Kampala. He lives with his parents in Naguru, a suburb of Kampala.
“We met at school, but started having sex during the lockdown when his parents were at work,” she said.
“When I conceived, his mother scolded me for spoiling him,” she recalls as tears stream down her chocolate face.
Victoria now hawks vegetables with her mother to make ends meet.
“I want to be a doctor, but I fear to go back to school because my friends will laugh at me. Besides, I have no one to look after my baby,” she says.
Victoria wants to enroll for a course in fashion design or journalism, but her mother cannot afford the tuition fees.
Sandra’s Story
Sandra, 15, lives with her mother in Naguru Godown, a slum in Kampala. Her mother is a hawker who singlehandedly looks after five children. Sandra is the first born.
She completed Primary Seven in 2020 and passed in division one. She wants to be a pharmacist, but now sees her dream waning.
Sandra has experienced most of the bad things poverty throws at a teenager, but she remained focused on her studies. Unfortunately, things changed with the advent of COVID-19.
Her mother travelled for two weeks and left her and her siblings with food for two days.
Afterwards, Sandra resorted to begging from neighbours to feed her siblings who are between four and 10 years old. In the process, a bodaboda rider offered to feed the family, but in exchange for sex.
“I resisted but gave up to save my siblings from starving. I lost my virginity and also got pregnant,” she narrates.
“I went for antenatal clinics and learnt I was HIV-positive. When I confronted that man for infecting me, he disappeared to date,” she says.
Sandra gave birth to a girl in August 2021.
“I want to go back to school, but mum cannot afford educating all of us,” she says.
Angella’s Story Of Hope
I gave birth at 14 years and returned to school. Angella Asiimwe conceived at 14 due to rape. Her relatives rejected her and yet she had earlier on lost both parents. She ended up on the streets of Mbarara city, eating from garbage bins, sleeping in the cold and surviving rape several times.
She also worked as a housemaid and cleaned public toilets to survive.
Fortunately, her brother took her back to school.
Today, Asiimwe is a lawyer. She is the founder of Voice Consults, a human rights defender, feminist, motivation speaker and entrepreneur.
She is also a Mandela Washington Fellowship alumni and among the Vision Group 2020 Top 40 under-40 achievers. She is at the helm of Hearts of Gold organisation and The Remnant Generation, a teenage mother shelter which has transformed lives of 1,064 teen mums and their babies.
Asiimwe believes, once teen mums are supported to continue with school, they can make it in life.
“I am proud mother of a 14-year-old boy and have beaten the odds. However, this would not have been possible if I was not given a chance,” she says.
However, these mums cannot do it alone. Asiimwe says many of them are confronted with difficult circumstances and need support from their families, friends, community and authorities.
‘Do Not Reject Teen Mothers’
No one desires to become a teen mom neither does it bring joy to any parent. Therefore, schools ought to be understanding and supportive to the mothers, recommends Peter Okware, a teacher and director of Teachers in Need, an organisation and Teachers’ TV Africa.
Okware adds that the education ministry allowed all learners including teen mothers or pregnant girls to go back to school.
“No school has a right to deny or segregate those learners. There is a booklet to guide schools to handle the learners well,” he says.
Where possible, the girls should also be allowed to share their life stories and experience all while warning others to avoid early pregnancies.
“Allow them to rest, move out of class when they need to and offer them special meals to motivate them to stay in school,” he suggests.
Programmes To Beat Stigma
With the reopening of educational institutions, some teenage mothers are likely to shun school for fear of stigma and the added responsibility of motherhood, Mercy Grace Munduru, a programme manager at ActionAid Uganda, says. She suggests that the Government and other stakeholders facilitate special programmes for pregnant girls and adolescent mothers.
“Explore virtual and physical learning alternatives with extra classes for teenage mothers,” she says.
There should be accelerated public awareness and back-to-school campaigns to mitigate stigma to motivate teenage mothers to return to school, Munduru adds.
Teenage mothers should be treated as other learners and allowed to stay in school, Josephine Zhane Omunyidde, founder of Engender Girls’ Mentorship (EGM).
Teachers and fellow learners must not stigmatise teenage mothers because they are children who deserve an opportunity to proceed with formal education, she adds.
“Pushing them out of school might result in another pregnancy and perpetuation of poverty,” she says.
These learners need a lot of support to fit in, says Gloria Nyakato, a social worker and founder of Teen Mums Voice located in Naguru, a suburb of Kampala.
“Encourage them to pursue their dreams because a bright future awaits them. Having a child does not rob them of their dreams,” she says.
Schools should look at teenage mothers collectively as a group and not isolate them, Nyakato adds. Nyakato adds that these girls have dealt with stigma and isolation in their families and communities, schools shouldn’t torment them.
Schools should also establish strict rules against bullying teen mothers, with fellow learners being encouraged to embrace them so they feel loved and accepted.
Explaining the danger of stigma, during plenary in November 2021, Rita Akankwasa, the Woman MP for Mbarara City, says it pushes girls to run away from home and school. They also become desperate and opt for unsafe abortions that result in deaths. She urges fellow legislators to use all platforms in their constituencies and speak for the girl child.
Case Studies Elsewhere
According to a report by the Borgen Project; Rise of teen pregnancy during Kenya’s lockdown, there was 40% rise in teenage pregnancies in Kenya with over 152,000 pregnancies reported in three months of 2020. In light of this, the Kenyan government still follows the return to school policy for teenage mothers which it adopted in 1994.
However, the study; implementation of the ‘Return to School’ policy for teenage mothers in Kenya shows that the policy does not comprehensively protect the right to and within education for teenage mothers.
Though there is unconditional re-admission, there is no compensation of the lost time; making it hard for the mothers to catch up with the rest of the students.
In addition, while teenage mothers drop out of school to give birth, the teenage fathers remain in school.
Also, while there are schools that have opened their doors to teenage mothers, others continue to discriminate them by re-admitting them based on academic or extra-curricular abilities.
Elsewhere, in Tanzania, much emphasis is put on preventing early pregnancy.
According to AFP (Advance Family Planning), Tanzania’s health ministry directed all primary and secondary schools across the country to establish help desks as part of a national campaign to reduce teenage pregnancy.
They provide counselling, reproductive health information and referrals to clinics.
Schools are also required to report the status of student pregnancies and early marriages every quarter to ensure that these challenges are visible and addressed.
However, pregnant girls are not allowed to remain in school and in some places they are barred from resuming school after giving birth.
Strengthen Counselling In Schools
Adolescent mothers need a platform where they can be listened to, guided and counselled, according to Prossy Kawala Muyeyero, a retired primary teacher and founder of Uphold the Girl Child organisation in Kamuli district.
“Schools should work with partners, including civil society organisations to help girls remain in school,” she says.
In the same vein, Nyakato advises schools to strengthen their counselling departments to deal with cases of bullying. She adds that since being a mother takes a lot, the girls should be guided on how to concentrate on their studies.
Relatedly, schools must be equipped to respond to the emotional needs of teenage mothers considering the change in behaviour due to the challenges occasioned by COVID-19, Munduru adds. Psychosocial support must be embedded in the learning system.
Teachers too need counselling to handle cases of teenage mothers.
Build Their Self Esteem
The challenges teenage girls are facing are unprecedented, Rita Aciro, the executive director of Uganda Women’s Network, says. She advises that parents and schools build the teen moms’ self-esteem to enable them stand for their rights.
Aciro also advocates mindset change.
“The pandemic has only exposed how we look at women and girls as sex objects. Everyone should protect and promote girls’ rights more seriously,” she says.
To Aciro, psychosocial support should be a must and continuous in all schools during the school term and outside.
However, Omunyidde adds that there are other issues that need to be addressed through intentional awareness and positive support systems.
“Mass media, government, NGOs and other actors need to partner more than ever before,” she says.
Nyakato suggests lauding those mothers that return to school to inspire others.
Give Them Options And Help With Their Babies
Give teen mothers options to choose from, Asiimwe says. These options include re-admission into the same school, transfer to another school or enrolling for vocational programmes.
A stigmatised girl is likely to concentrate better in a new school than the old one where colleagues saw her pregnant, Nyakato explains.
Teenage mothers should be supported with child care when they are at school.
“Some of the girls I mentor will not return to school because they have nowhere to keep their babies. However, if she knows that her baby is in safe hands, she will concentrate at school,” Nyakato says.
Schools need to be considerate and understanding, explains Gorretti Byomire, a lecturer and advocate for Persons with Disabilities (PWDs).
For example, they should make provisions for extra lessons and support in case the mother misses school due to child care challenges.
Similarly, Sanyu says the girls need empathy and a safe place to transition safely.
“It is not enough to get them back to school,” she says adding: “We should work together to create safe environments for our girls to feel at home in their bodies, minds, and spaces to succeed in the face of challenges.”
Set Up Stringent Policies
Asiimwe and Omunyidde advocate that the education ministry develops and implements a policy that will enable teenage mothers return to school, while availing them with an enabling environment.
Munduru advocates the government should education budgets from being cut. It should also facilitate supportive measures for pregnant girls and adolescent mothers to continue with their education.
Meanwhile, in November last year, while in plenary, the health minister, Jane Ruth Aceng, said the education ministry is yet to complete the School Health Policy where the plight of the girlchild will be addressed.
She, however, asked MPs not to leave out boys, who she said have been forgotten and yet they are key players in the challenges girls are facing.
Boys too need to be talked to and mentored to reduce teenage pregnancies, explains Penlope Sanyu, a women’s rights advocate with Qweshunga organisation.
The government should also roll out programmes in schools on sex education highlighting the dangers of premature sex, sexually transmitted diseases and unplanned pregnancies.
Disabled, HIV-Positive Mums
COVID-9 lockdown exposed many young girls with disabilities to sex offenders. Several conceived, explains Gorretti Byomire, a lecturer and advocate for Persons with Disabilities (PWDs).
“Young PWDs are less likely to report abuse and some don’t even know they are being abused,” she says.
Also, Muyeyero currently looks after many adolescent mothers who are also living with HIV/AIDS. While some are excited to return to school, others are hesitant due to depression but they are being counselled.
Pregnant Girls Need Attention
Pregnant girls too have a right to education, but schools lock them out referring to the education ministry guidelines which were issued in 2020.
They require girls to undergo mandatory pregnancy tests and if found pregnant, she goes on maternity leave when she is at least three months.
However, in March, 2021, Uganda National Examinations Board through their official Twitter handle allowed pregnant girls to sit the exams, but warned that the leeway may not continue after the COVID-19 period.
It went on to warn that UNEB does not condone teenage pregnancy and as such, learners should concentrate on studies before babies.
According to Center for Health, Human Rights and Development, allowing pregnant girls to sit exams is not enough. They also need to attend classes. But forcing them on maternity leave denies them the chance to attend class, violating their right to education.
They add that with an estimated 34% of girls dropping out of school, Uganda will be raising a generation where women are locked out of education because of teenage pregnancy.
They advocate proactive measures that reduce teenage pregnancy while enabling pregnant teenagers to stay in school, prepare for and sit for their exams.
Children Organisations
Save the Children, an international movement for children, is supporting young mothers to return to school through Accelerated Education Programme.
In their article; How teenage mothers and pregnant girls in Uganda have defied tradition and successfully campaigned to return to class, they state that many young mothers struggle to return to school due to barriers such as social stigma, lack of childcare and financial support.
Through AEP, hundreds of girls in West Nile and other areas are back in school.
They also enjoy child-friendly spaces for their children to play while they learn. The organisation also provides them with books and pens.
They call on governments, parents and communities to remove barriers for all children, including pregnant girls and young mothers, to return to education, as set out in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Teen Pregnancy Statistics
Each year, over 21 million adolescent girls get pregnant in developing countries, 19% of them in sub-Saharan Africa, and since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, the numbers have doubled. In Uganda, it has soared from 25% according Uganda Demographic Survey 2016 to over 50% hence making it a pandemic with in a pandemic.
The United Nations Population Fund (UNFP) report; Addressing teenage pregnancy during the COVID-19 pandemic indicates that 354,736 teenage pregnancies were registered in 2020, and 196,499 in the first six months of 2021.
At the ICPD25 summit in Nairobi in 2019, Uganda made a commitment to eliminate obstacles that stand in the way of girls’ empowerment including teenage pregnancy.
Suzanne Mandong, the acting representative of UNFPA Uganda says they are supporting the Government of Uganda to deliver on this commitment.
“We are working with the Ministry of Education to develop policy guidance to provide a framework to support safe re-entry of girls into school after pregnancy,” she says.
Govt Interventions
Last November, Members of Parliament proposed that government includes skilling of children mostly girls who are unable to continue with formal education in the new parish model.
This follows the rising cases of defilement and teenage pregnancies.
Tororo district Woman MP Sarah Opendi, who moved the motion said the situation of girls was appalling requiring urgent response from the Government.
Skilling centres should be established, equipped and accessible to the girls, says Cecilia Ogwal (Dokolo District Woman MP).
The centres should be located at parishes to save the learners from walking long distances, explains the Deputy Speaker, Anita Among.
Juliet Kinyamatama (Rakai District Woman MP) urged government to consider incentives to encourage teenage mothers to stay in school. She proposed giving them food for their children before re-opening of schools.
Also, in December 2021, the government in partnership with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and UNICEF launched a national campaign to address defilement, child marriage, teenage pregnancy, and promote positive parenting.
The national campaign was spearheaded by the First Lady, Janet Museveni, vice-president Maj. (rtd) Jessica Alupo and the Prime Minister, Robinah Nabbanja.
All ministries, departments and agencies and local governments were directed to take the necessary action to address defilement, child marriage, teenage pregnancy and promote positive parenting in line with the law.
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