BY: Shallon S.Gonlor
NIMBA COUNTY — Liberia’s Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection Coordinator of Nimba County, YaahBelleh Suah says the birth rate among teenagers in the county is on the increase. “Well, let me say that the issue of teenage pregnancy in the county, Nimba particularly is high”.
Madam Suah indicated that the high birth rate among underage girls is as a result of parents laissez fairness, and the Ministry of Education mandate to allow people with pregnancy remaining in school.
She said the fertility rates are amongteenagers 15 to 19 years old. She further noted that parents are not and have refused to educate their girlschildren, considering the effects of pregnancy in teenage.
“I feel that parents are not educating their girls and school authority too not doing well for the to educate and inform girls about the future and to keep focus on their education”.
The Gender Coordinator of NimbaCounty further noted that the overall fertility rate in the county heightens by the day, especially among young girls.
Madam Yaah Belleh Suah also reported on high number of persistent non-support and abandonment cases in the county.
Giving a statistics, she reported that from January, 2024 to present about 40 cases of persistent non-support including abandonment are reported in her office.
Madam Suah also stated that a goodnumber of Liberia’s teen girls are out of school, as compared to their male counterparts.
She stressed that young women aged 15–19 are already single mothers or pregnant with their first child without father and rampant substance abuse is also driving school dropouts among future Liberians.
The age structure of the population of Liberia is young as about 60% less than 25 years old but lack proper education.
Girls faced formidable challenges, including limited access to education, sexual and reproductive health information among others.
Early marriage, and teenage pregnancy are also common among girls. Nearly 11 per cent of females initiate sex at ages 11-14 in Liberia
Teenage pregnancy contributes significantly to dropout rates among school going girls and a percentage of adolescent girls with no education are mothers, compared to percentage of those with secondary and higher education.
In addition, significant percentages of adolescent pregnancies are unintended and while some end in unsafe abortion.
Underlying factors that further exacerbate the reproductive health situation of young people in Liberia include prevalence of gender based violence including sexual abuse and rape, engagement in commercial sex work, and intravenous drug usage respectively.
