Schools raise the alarm over pregnant students

Education stakeholders have expressed concern over increasing cases of pregnant students in schools in Kisumu County.

And with the government policy that requires that the students be allowed in school, teachers are forced to look the other way.

The schools management allow the girls to attend clinics, are excused from some co-curriculum activities, and parents and guardians bring nutritious meals for them.

The Ministry of Education said they have no statistics on the pregnancy cases in secondary schools. "We do not have statistics of student pregnancies. The only report I have is a case from Thur Gem Secondary School (in Nyakach Sub County) where the girl disappeared after realising she was pregnant," said County Director of Education Sabina Aroni.

She said most of the cases are handled at the sub county levels, hence her office does not have information about the matter.

Nyanza Initiative for Girl child Education and Empowerment, an organisation which rehabilitates girls who drop out of school due to pregnancy, warned that the situation is slowly getting out of hand.

Organisation Programs Coordinator Godfrey Okumu said getting statistics on the issue has been a major challenge which has affected intervention mechanisms.

Released

"Previously it would be easier to get such information from stakeholders, but now days pregnant girls are allowed to continue learning so most of the cases go unnoticed," he said.

The Saturday Standard survey found that the pregnancy cases ranged between two and seven in every school.

St Barnabas Girls' Secondary School in Seme recorded the highest number of pregnancy cases with seven girls; five in Form Four and two in Form One.

School Principal Mercy Olando confirmed that the girls pregnancies range between two and seven months. She said they conduct regular pregnancy tests.

At the neighbouring Mariwa Secondary School, five students are pregnant. One has since been released to go and deliver.

The Principal Dick Ochieng said: "This is a day school and we only keep the girls till 4pm. After that, they are with their parents and we have discovered that this is where the challenge is."

At Ratta Mixed Secondary School a Form Four students is pregnant.