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{
    "id": 850727,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/850727/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 58,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Khaniri",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 171,
        "legal_name": "George Munyasa Khaniri",
        "slug": "george-khaniri"
    },
    "content": "and 19 years. This is very disturbing. Organisations working on children issues say that the number could be higher than the reported cases. This year alone, in Kilifi County, there has been close to 14,000 teenage pregnancies with 290 of them being children of 10 to 14 years. Last year in Kisumu County, 13,894 teenage girls got pregnant. One of our local dailies featured very shocking teen pregnancy statistics. Narok County had the highest rate of teen pregnancy of 40 per cent. That is the good County of my friend Sen. Olekina. Kitui County, which announced 110 pregnant candidates sitting for their form four exams, was number 30 on the list at 14 per cent. Mr. Speaker, Sir, these statistics are shocking. We are talking about children here. In Kenya a 10 to 14 year old girl is in standard five to eight. These are children whose physical bodies are not mature enough to bring life into this world and nurture it. They are not psychologically mature enough either. This, therefore, brings about complications that in most cases can be fatal to both the mother and the unborn baby. Mr. Speaker, Sir, an unplanned pregnancy changes the trajectory of a girl’s life with long lasting, physical, social economic and physiological ramifications. It is an interruption of life that can never be undone. Natural instincts will dictate that a mother puts her children first before anything else. This causes most of these girls to neglect their studies and focus on bringing up their babies. Most of them drop out of school after being impregnated and others are forced into early marriages. This compromises education attainment and the ability to secure decent economic opportunities. Mr. Speaker, Sir, if the young people who should be going to school and help in the growth of our economy are taking care of children, then we may not achieve our development goals as a country. What exactly is causing this increased numbers of teenage pregnancy? Is it peer pressure, molestation or lack of sexual awareness? In some places, the biggest driver is poverty. The girls are forced to exchange their bodies for little money to enable them buy personal effects. In other cases, touts and motor cycle riders commonly known as boda boda operators are the cause of this predicament. Night funeral discos, child marriages, rape and peer influences are other causes. A number of girls who have given birth in their teenage years confess that they were either lured by their teachers or classmates. Data from the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) shows that in 2015, 126 teachers were fired for various vices some of which included sexual offences. Mr. Speaker, Sir, while the Government emphasizes on the back to school integration after birth, there is more that needs to be done to ensure teenage mothers are actually learning. Systems should be put in place to ensure that such young people get someone such as their parents or hired help to take care of their children while they go back to school if they are to concentrate in class. Organisations or facilities can be put in place to help girls who have been disowned by families or have no one to turn to for help. The pressure to mature and transition from a child to a mother is extremely stressful for teenagers, especially because they still need parenting themselves. Therefore, being in a position where they have to take up responsibilities which their minds are not ready for can be very depressing for them. Guidance and counseling sessions for the teen mothers can be introduced as out of school activities to help them cope with their situations. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate"
}