By Audrey John
In the Africa fact of the matter beyond Sierra Leone spectacle from where I sit to write, the truth is that COVID 19 has heightened more incidences of teenage pregnancy.
This is in spite of the social distancing norms that were put in place. I have done scan of what the picture looks like in Sierra Leone and my impression has been grim about the conditions of young girls who are bound to be staying out of school because they now lactating mothers. Many of them below the statutory age for consent could be labeled as victims of rape. With a stringent law for such an offence in Sierra Leone at the behest of the project of the First Lady of Sierra Leone Fatima Bio, there is no let-up in rape which calls for more collective action of community stakeholders and state actors to roll back the egregious acts of sexual exploitation of young girls.
In my study of the subject matter the case of one of the victims has been captured and used as the micro image to present the bigger picture that transcend the boundaries of Sierra Leone.
She abandoned school in a rather abrupt manner. This was after she was impregnated by her peer. Well, to many, the question that comes to mind is whether Isha Bangura 15, (not her real name), will ever return to her school.
When COVID `19 forced school closures the girls were exposed to less oversight from their teacher and parents and the effect is what we are now seeing in the number of cases that Isha Bangura represents.
Isha Bangura was already in the senior school preparing to write the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) when she became pregnant. She is the second of four children, and unlike her sisters, she was even lucky to have been educated to the level she was before she got pregnant. She was passionate about school, but not until her father lost his job at a Mega Cola company where he was working before the corona virus pandemic erupted. The job loss of his father had a knock on effect on the socio-economic condition at a difficult time. The coping mechanism was to fall for the bait of those who have little money to offer for sex. In Sierra Leone the motorbike riders can make fast money and they could so easily entice such girls in the condition of vulnerable Isha to submit to unprotected sex. This is how she was exploited.
“James provided me with my basic needs which my dad used to provide, so I thought the only way to show appreciation was to give in to his demand for sex,” she revealed.
According to Rainbow Initiative, 242 cases of teenage pregnancy were reported to at their center in the first six months of the year 2021, compared to 282 in the first six months of the year 2020.
For the likes of Bangura, a psychological support will be very crucial to bring her back to speed with free education instituted in the country. This is after she would have given birth.
Acting Chief Social Worker, Ministry of Social Welfare, Mariatu Bangura, said her ministry will establish a psychosocial center aimed at providing psychosocial support for girls who are under some form of trauma or distress and to address issues of mental health.
Executive Director, Citizen’s Advocacy Network (CAN), Thomas Moore Conteh, conceded that the issue cannot be unconnected to the current pandemic in the country.
According to Moore, each time there is a pandemic the country will experience an increase in teenage pregnancy. “During lockdowns, children are tempted to get themselves in a lot of anti-social activities which usually lead to teenage pregnancy,” he said. Moore commended government for the laws that have been instituted and are aimed at protecting girls. However, he said government should provide opportunities which will make young people meaningfully engaged to resist sexual exploitation for basic needs. He added that government should create the environment for entrepreneurship to thrive and equip technical vocational institutions in a bid to cut down on the number of school dropouts in the country.
Mohamed Thompson is a parent of three children. He suggested that parents should carry the bulk of the blame for teenage pregnancy. He stressed the need for monitoring. He opined that parental monitoring is very lacking in a lot of homes.
Pursuant to Section 9(1a), Act No. 6 of 1991 Constitution of Sierra Leone, government shall direct its policy towards ensuring that there are equal rights and adequate opportunities for all citizens at all levels by ensuring that every citizen is given opportunity to be educated to the best of his/her ability, aptitude and inclination by providing educational facilities at all levels and aspects of education, such as primary, secondary, vocational, technical, college and universities.
In 2018, the President Bio led government, as part of his campaign promises, initiated the free quality education which saw an increase in enrollment in all schools across the country. However, many are of the strongest conviction that progress is yet slow in terms of achieving quality.
According to the Minister of Technical and Higher Education, Professor Alpha Tejan Wurie, 33,000 pupils sat to the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) in 2018, three years later in 2021 over 150,000 sat to the same exams. The Minister stressed the need for expansion of colleges and universities in a bid to accommodate the huge number of pupils who will make it to tertiary institutions. The Minister had also spoken of several government’s projects which are aimed at creating the enabling environment for more pupils who are qualified to enter colleges and universities.
For Isha Bangura and her peers who have found themselves in such dire circumstance, light seems to be at the end of the tunnel for them if they decide to come back to school, for the 2022 budget has allocated Le 1.7 trillion Leones to education. This is a positive development ,indicating that all is not lost; as even pregnant girls have access in the Sierra Leone New Direction school system of President Julius Maada Bio.