Rural girls encouraged to value education

Yoliswa Dube-Moyo, Mat South Bureau Chief
RURAL girls have been encouraged to value education and focus on empowering themselves amid reports that teenage pregnancies have risen in the last year.

The number of pregnant girls who dropped out of school is still high across the country despite the existence of a law allowing them to remain in school even after being impregnated.

The Education Act which was amended last year makes it illegal to expel pupils who fall pregnant.

Teenage pregnancies or child marriages, financial constraints and low perception on education have been cited as some of the reasons contributing to pupils dropping out of school.

Prolonged school closures due to the Covid-19 pandemic, worsened the situation.

Speaking during a community engagement meeting in the Gungwe area in Gwanda, a representative from DREAMS, a non-governmental organisation, Ms Ruth Mathe encouraged the youths to respect themselves.

“Self-respect and being dedicated to getting an education should be an everyday priority,” said Ms Mathe.

Girls were encouraged to regard themselves highly and avoid engaging in sexual activities in bushy areas.

“My grandchildren know that when they knock off from school, they come straight home.

They can only leave the house once they’re done with their chores.

Parents shouldn’t abuse their children but they should be open with them so that they can freely tell them when they have been sexually abused,” said Mrs Eunice Ncube, a community member speaking at the same meeting.

A joint thematic committee report on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on the provision of quality education, sanitisation and hygiene management in schools tabled in the Senate recently said the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education has made great strides towards ensuring access to education for all.

In the report, Senator Tsitsi Muzenda said her committee had observed that the outbreak of Covid-19 has affected the effective delivery of education to learners and prolonged school closures have increased teenage pregnancies.

“Adolescent learners easily fall pregnant during their schooling days due to poverty and peer pressure.

This was also worsened by the one-year break due to the Covid-19 pandemic with most school heads noting that the statistics were unusually high during 2020,” she said.

“Although the Government policy allows such girls to continue with schooling when they fall pregnant, some of them were shy to continue under such circumstances. This problem has negatively affected all the schools visited.

At Mangondo Secondary School in Bikita, 60 percent of the drop-outs were as a result of early pregnancies.

At Maqhekeni Secondary School in Bulilima, 13 girls fell pregnant during lockdown and only two of them managed to come back and continue with their education.

At Madlambudzi High School in Plumtree, there were six confirmed cases of learners who dropped out as a result of pregnancy.

School authorities indicated that the Covid-19 lockdown which induced idleness contributed to this sharp increase in teenage pregnancy.”

Senator Muzenda said her committee also observed that there was a high number of learners dropping out of school due to financial constraints.

She said there is also low perception on education in some communities contributing to school drop-outs.

“This problem affected mostly schools that are in gold rich areas and those closer to the borders such as Tsholotsho High School, Maqhekeni Secondary School and Madlambudzi High School.

Most people are cross-border transporters, are well off but have no or little educational background.

Learners therefore, aspire for such a lifestyle and drop out of school.

School authorities indicated that learners drop out of school and cross to South Africa or Botswana and within a year or two come back driving good cars,” said Senator Muzenda.

She said in the Matabeleland region, travelling long distances to the nearest school was also fuelling drop-outs as some of the pupils travel between 15 and 20km to the nearest school.

Some learners stay across rivers and during the rainy season, they fail to cross such rivers and drop out.

Senator Muzenda’s committee recommended that the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education should close the gaps that exist between rural and urban learners. — @Yolisswa