Question NW1950 to the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education
01 June 2023 - NW1950
van der Merwe, Ms LL to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education
In view of the finding by Statistics South Africa that 90 037 girls aged 10 to 19 years gave birth in the period March 2021 to April 2022 across all provinces, and considering the high rate of teenage pregnancy in the Republic, what are the full relevant details of plans that her department has in place to curb the teenage pregnancy crisis in schools?
Reply:
Following the launch and the dissemination of the DBE Policy on the Prevention and Management of Learner Pregnancy in Schools, currently the Department is developing a Prevention and Management of Learner Pregnancy Implementation Guide for schools, in an effort to support the school leadership. Furthermore, the department continues to strengthen the implementation of programs that contributes to the prevention of learner pregnancy, i.e., Integrated School Health Program, Comprehensive Sexuality Education from Grade 4 – 12 and peer education programs that support uptake of sexual and reproductive health services.