Education CS Amina’s Pleasant Offer to Pregnant KCSE Candidates

They are often viewed as immoral and people without hope let alone a future. The society judge’s them so harshly that many of them end up giving up in life at a very young age.

Education CS Amina Mohammed now seems to be on a mission to change the society’s view on girls that get pregnant at a young age. The CS has confirmed the governments commitment i seeing these girls through their education to any level of their choice.

Speaking from Hills School in Eldoret where she went to monitor the ongoing KCSE examinations, the CS also made it clear that stern action will be taken against those responsible for getting the girls pregnant at a very young age.

“All the girls who got children will be allowed to continue with their studies to the level they wish because we also want the children they got to have a good life. Those responsible for getting the girls pregnant will have action taken against them,” said Amina.

A number of counties around the country led by Kitui and Kilifi have made headlines for recording the highest number of pregnancies among students sitting the national examinations.

In Kitui alone, Some 72 KCSE candidates pregnant with the County education director confirming that the numbers are shocking.

“It’s sad that it could be the highest in the country,” she told the Star on the phone.

As the news emerged, boda boda riders have been put on the spot. They have been accused of luring girls with free rides.

In Bomet county, two girls gave birth. In Meru, a candidate sat her exam in hospital after delivering an underweight baby. Two students wrote the exam in health facilities, but it was not immediately clear whether they were pregnant.

Politicians have also expressed concern over the high number of children sitting exams in maternity wards. Kesses MP Mishra Swarup called for stiff penalties against men responsible for the pregnancies.

Usain Gishu governor Jackson Mandago urged parents need to talk to their children, especially during this long school holiday.

“I’m worried that many young girls this year sat their KCPE examination at the Mother and Baby [section] at Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital,” he said.

In Bomet, Petroleum CAS John Mosonik urged security officers to hunt for those behind the pregnancies.

“We’re warning all those involved that the law will finally catch up with them. We can’t sit [back] and watch as schoolgirls are misused and culprits going scot-free,” he said.

Education sector players must maintain discipline among children so such incidents are tamed, he said.

Meanwhile, school heads have been directed to provide monthly data on the number of pregnant girls.

Disciplinary action will be taken against those who fail to adhere to the new directive issued yesterday by Education PS Belio Kipsang.

The reports will be sent to county education directors. Kipsang told head teachers in Nandi that the ministry had not been supplied with proper information on the number of pregnant learners.

The heads will also explain actions they have taken to curb the problem. Kipsang warned parents against settling defilement cases outside court.

“Police officers and administrators in areas where such cases are reported will be held responsible for abetting sexual assault on schoolgirls,” he said. Last Thursday, Education CS Amina Mohamed ordered quality assurance and standards officers at the ministry to investigate teen pregnancies.

What mechanisms should the government put in place to reduce the number of teenage pregnancies in the country?

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *