adminIn a statement released in commemoration of the World Population Day, UNFPA described the figure as too high for the teenagers as it exposed them to serious health risks.
“This is worrisome as it is an indicator of young women’s high exposure to unprotected sex which may lead to unintended pregnancies, unsafe abortions and sexually transmitted infections, including HIV,” reads part of the statement.
“For many of these girls pregnancy and marriage has nothing to do with informed choice. It could be a case of rights violations, inadequate education or sexual coercion,” says UNFPA.
Commenting on adolescent pregnancies, UNFPA’s executive director, Dr Babatunde Osotimehin, said there was a need for commitment from all nations, communities and individuals in both developed and developing countries to invest in adolescent girls.
Dr Osotimehin said governments should enact and enforce national laws that raise the age of marriage to 18 and should promote community-based efforts that support girls’ rights and prevent child marriage and its consequences.
“Adolescents pregnancy is not just a health issue. It is a developmental issue. It is deeply rooted in poverty, gender inequality, violence, child and forced marriages, power imbalances between adolescent girls and their male partners, lack of education and the failure of systems and institutions to protect their rights,” Dr Osotimehin said.
“When a young girl is educated, she is more likely to marry later, delay childbearing until she is ready, have healthier children, and earn a higher income,” he said. — The Herald.
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