ZONTA Ghana raises alarm at teenage pregnancies in Ghana
ZONTA Ghana, an international service organisation committed to the advancement of the status of women, has raised red flags at the alarming level of teenage pregnancies in the country
It has therefore, called for an “immediate action to reverse the trend”.
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“On the occasion of World Population Day, which is observed on July 11, this year, we (ZONTA Ghana) would like to join the world to raise awareness on global population issues,” it said in a statement issued by the organisation to mark the day.
Sunday, July 11 was observed as World Population Day, on the theme, “The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on fertility” .
Alarming rate
The day was established by the Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme in 1989 to focus on world population issues.
ZONTA Ghana says the number of teenage mothers in the country is alarming and the phenomenon needs to be researched into for strategies to be put in place to address it.
It said recent figures released by the Ghana Health Service (GHS) showed that 301 girls were impregnated every day while 13 teenage pregnancies were recorded every hour.
It said “by the time a parent goes through a work day of eight hours, 104 teenage daughters would have been impregnated”.
It further quoted the GHS report which states that a total of 109,888 teenage pregnancies were recorded in 2020 with the lowest age of an impregnated girl being 10 years.
Basic rights
The statement said “these figures should make any adult cringe to know how the rights of our girls are being violated.
“Their basic right to life is hijacked, their right to education is stolen while their right to development is sabotaged by the perpetrators while parents and society look on.”
“Girls, as tender as 10 years of age, are being defiled by irresponsible maniacs, and somebody must rise up and speak for these intimidated girls. Somebody must protect our girls and somebody must ensure that the perpetrators are brought to book,” it added.
It said “ZONTA Ghana has assumed the responsibility to ensure that no girl is denied her right to education because of under-age pregnancy”.
The group said it was going to “embark on an aggressive education and sensitisation campaign in schools to create awareness among girls to be discerning enough to the antiques of the perpetrators”.
This campaign it said, “will not and cannot succeed if parents do not play their part by creating awareness at home”.
“We also call on the government, parents, churches, opinion leaders, parent teacher associations and civil society organisations to join in this sensitisation campaign to drive the message home to the point where our girls can say no to sex, and the perpetrators can be brought to book,” it added.