Learner Pregnancies

There are varying statistics on learner pregnancies because departments source their information from different places. The Portfolio Committee on Basic Education heard this when it received a briefing on the topic.

Regardless of which data source is used, the numbers are very high for the country. Teenagers between the age of 10 and 19 have contributed 13.9% to registered child birth in 2016, according to the Recorded Live Births report by Statistics South Africa. More than 190 learners in Grade 3‚ 4 and 5 fell pregnant between 2014 and 2016. If learners from Grade 6 and 7 who fell pregnant are taken into account‚ the number jumps to 1 449. However; the silver lining is that the trend overtime is coming down although not fast enough.

Key drivers of teenage pregnancy include early sexual debut, gender based violence, inter-generational and transactional relationships, multiple relationships and low use of contraceptives. Poverty, family dysfunctionality and moral decay are other contributing factors.

Despite progressive policies supporting pregnant learners’ rights, they still face many challenges in school. The main challenge is insufficient support from school and teachers as only a few schools have formal or effective mechanisms in place to offer sufficient opportunities for girls to catch up on missed work when they return to school.

As a way forward, emphasis is placed on the Comprehensive Pregnancy Prevention Methods, primarily through provision and access to male and female condoms. It also includes the strengthening of the curriculum for Compulsory Comprehensive Sexuality Education through educator training and aligning with Life Orientation textbooks. Peer education and other co-curricular programmes are also part of prevention approaches. The need to strengthen partnerships with development partners, increase public awareness through parental involvement, community dialogues and engaging parents on their key role in the prevention of teenage pregnancy is well recognised.

MPs noted the decrease in the trend in learner pregnancies but considered teenage pregnancy as an emergency. They expressed concern about underage children who are found in shebeens, where a lot of these incidents occur, and about the cultural and traditional practices which lead to young children falling pregnant. They also emphasised the importance of vetting for all people who work with learners to guarantee their safety. Collaboration by various departments to deal with learner pregnancy is also of paramount importance.

Read full report: https://pmg.org.za/committee-meeting/25478/