The Citizen (Dar es Salaam)
Mike Mwaniki
8 May 2008
Nairobi — Sexual activity among students - both girls and boys - is high and starts early, says a study released on Tuesday.
It says eight out of 10 of the adolescents have had sex before they reached 20 years, which forms the bulk of school going youths.
A recent survey among secondary school students shows that 13 per cent of students had experienced their first pregnancy by 14 years while 10 per cent of the girls interviewed had been pregnant and had either given birth or procured an abortion.
"Teenage pregnancy is therefore a major contributor to school dropout among girls," the survey says.
At national level, the drop out rate at primary school level is almost the same for boys and girls with a slightly higher rate for males.
"There are significant regional variations with Nyanza and North Eastern provinces showing higher rates for girls than Central Province where the dropout rate for girls is less than one per cent."
Nyanza and Western provinces recorded the highest dropout rates for girls followed closely by North Eastern.
"The total national dropout rate stands at two per cent for girls and 2.1 for boys in primary schools."
Adds the report: "This high level sexual activity is associated with risks such as HIV/Aids, pregnancy, unsafe abortion, economic hardship and school dropout.
"About 33 per cent of girls in secondary school have had sexual intercourse which is often unprotected."
Sexual activity begins earliest in Nyanza province (16 years) and latest in Nairobi (19 years).
"With early sexual debut and low contraceptives use, the incidence of early and unwanted pregnancy among young people is bound to be high with profound consequences including unsafe abortion and school dropout."
At primary school, dropout rates for boys are higher than that of girls in the lower levels but changes as both reach puberty.
Some of the factors fuelling teenage pregnancy include the break down in traditional family systems, influence of the mass media, urbanisation as well as lack of access to information on sexuality and poverty.
According to the report, based on the estimates of 10,000 girls leaving school every year, the Government loses an estimated Sh60 million annually.
"There are also indirect costs associated with girls dropout such as loss of lifetime earnings and increase in infant and under five mortality."
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