Over one thousand teenage girls have been reportedly impregnated within the last three months in Tororo district, Uganda.
According to Daily Monitor UG, the Tororo district experienced a sudden rise in teenage pregnancy in ninety days, hence threatening to cut short- the pursuit for education amongst girls of school going age.
A data presented by the district bio-statician, Mr Ali Mugerwa, gave the number of pregnant girls in the district within the last three month as 1,833. The girls are reportedly between the ages of 10-19 years.
Mugerwa speaking at the district stakeholder’s dialogue held June 4th by the National Association of Women Organisation of Uganda, where he presented the data said,
“The highlighted cases of teenage pregnancy are much less than the actual number because these are just those who managed to go for antenatal services yet a big number fear to go for antenatal services thinking that they will be laughed at”.
According to him, involving cases of defilement by close family members- was extracted from the district health management information system sourced from public health facilities.
“All the people who impregnated these innocent children need to be arraigned before court but it’s becoming a challenge as some of the parents connive with the suspects,” he said.
Speaking further, he blamed both parents and the ineffective justice system. He attributed the prevailing crisis majorly to the failure of parents to play their roles well.
Meanwhile, Ms Pauline Nabwire, the program’s officer at National Association of Women Organization of Uganda, says the sudden rise in teenage pregnancy in the district is as a result of poor parenting coupled with greed for dowry, poverty, peer pressure and values reinforced by tradition.
