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Tinomuda Chakanyuka, Sunday News Reporter
@irielyan
CASES of teenage pregnancies have remained high in the country, particularly among girls with less education and those in rural areas, with latest statistics showing that one in every 10 adolescent girls gives birth each year.
According to data from the Zimbabwe Demographic Health Survey (ZDHS) 2015, commissioned by Zimstat and released recently, there was a slight decrease in the fertility rate among women aged between 15 and 19 since 2010, from 115 to 110 per 1 000 girls.
However, analysts argue that despite the slight decrease, the figure remains high.
The data indicates that 27,2 percent of adolescent girls in rural areas have already started child bearing, compared to 10,3 percent in urban areas.
This shows a slight decrease from 2010 when 28 percent of adolescent girls from rural areas were mothers compared to 16,4 percent of their urban counterparts.
The statistics also showed that teenage pregnancies were more than twice higher among girls with primary education than among those who attended secondary school.
At least 17,3 percent of girls who have attained secondary school education were already mothers, compared to 37,8 percent among girls who have only gone up to primary school level.
The results showed that adolescent pregnancy varied widely according to wealth, geographic location and education with teenage pregnancies also higher among the poor.
At least 33,3 percent of girls from poor backgrounds were already mothers compared to 6,1 percent of their counterparts from well-to-do backgrounds.
Although the survey report noted the slight decrease in teenage pregnancies between 2010 and 2015, it conceded that the cases remain high.
According to health experts, teenagers were at risk of experiencing complications during pregnancy and their babies were more likely to be born prematurely, with low birth weight and or disabilities.
Development analyst Mr Enock Musara said religious and cultural practices, social relations and gender imbalances were some of the major drivers of adolescent pregnancies among rural girls.
“Due to high poverty prevalence in rural areas most children are not able to go to school and that redundancy often leaves them vulnerable to various forms of abuse. For the girl child early marriage seems to be the only escape from poverty.
“We also have various cultural and religious practices that condone child marriages. Those are prevalent in rural areas and again leave the girl child vulnerable,” he said.
Gender activist Mrs Vimbai Nhutsve-Musengi suggested a cocktail of measures to curb child sexual abuse cases.
“We need strict laws and deterrent punishments against those who abuse children. Young girls should be equipped with adequate information on sexual reproductive health.
Studies have also shown that the longer girls stay in school the less vulnerable they become to child marriages, teenage pregnancies and so on,” she said.
The survey also showed a dramatic improvement in the use of contraceptives among married adolescents between 2010 and 2015.
“The 2015 ZDHS brings good news with regards to the sexual and reproductive health of adolescents, with HIV prevention behaviour and contraceptive use dramatically improving,” reads part of the report.
It said at least 44,9 percent of married women aged between 15 and 19 were using modern contraceptives, an increase in 2015 up from 35,4 percent in 2010.
Unmet need for contraception among young girls also decreased by 27 percent between 2010 and 2015.
Last year the country was seized with debate over the legal age of consent to sexual intercourse with magistrates being accused of technically lowering the consent age to 12 and also giving lenient sentences to child abusers.
Earlier this year the Supreme Court historically ruled that marriage before the age of 18 was illegal, putting to rest the debate on the matter.
Online Reporter