Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 1268785,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1268785/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 112,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Kirinyaga County, UDA",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Njeri Maina",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": " Hon. Temporary Speaker, I beg to move the following Motion: THAT, aware that improving public health is a fundamental responsibility of the Government and it is imperative to address pressing health problems faced by young people, including poor sexual and reproductive health, inadequate knowledge and information regarding sexual health and protection against sexually transmitted infections; concerned that the current state of adolescent health training programmes are inadequate and fragmented resulting in limited access to health care information and services by the youth in the country; further concerned that as a result of this, young people face significant barriers in accessing comprehensive health care; cognizant that comprehensive sexual education through school-based programmes, community-based programmes and health care facilities can promote healthy sexual practices amongst young people and reduce the spread of HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections, lower the incidences of teenage pregnancies thus increasing school attendance and retention; now therefore, this House resolves that the National Government through the State Department of Basic Education introduces comprehensive health, wellness and sex education in the curriculum as a core subject in schools. Hon. Temporary Speaker, we must agree as a nation that young people in this nation do not have the right information when it comes to matters health and sex education. I ran a campaign in Kirinyaga County dubbed the “Triple Threat Campaign” which was against teenage pregnancies, sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) and mental health. What we learned from the campaign when we engaged professionals to talk to our young children in schools is disheartening. We are living in an era of social media platforms that are clearly unregulated by the Government. We have seen what happens in developed nations like the United Kingdom and the United States of America. I am working on stringent measures to ensure that they have access to information. Some of these platforms offer misleading information to our young people. If our young people do not have the right information, they are prone to think and believe what they see on the social media platforms. We live in a nation where we can say we have seen the church up in arms about moral decay. Access to the right and correct sexual information is not a question of morality. It is a question of enabling our children to make the right decision when it comes to protecting themselves. The education that is taught in the curriculum is not adequate to ensure that our children are empowered when it comes to protecting themselves. We had a case in Kirinyaga County where the rate of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) was too high among young people that it caused an uproar. I am asking myself, what are we doing about it? What is this House doing to protect the future of our children? We can no longer afford to fold our hands and expect the situation to resolve itself. We cannot wish away social media. We have seen the discussion. If you go to The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}