Counsellors in Kiambu Sub-County have voiced their support for the government’s decision to introduce sex education in primary schools in a bid to fight early pregnancies in the institutions.
Speaking on Thursday in his office, a counsellor in the region, Ms Judith Wairimu said that children tend to be sexually active even at the age of ten years unlike in the past when their bodies would start maturing at 15 years, adding that this has led to the worrying cases of pregnancy cases in primary schools.
She noted that parents shy away from talking about sexual matters with their children, claiming that they are too young to have knowledge on sexuality leaving the children to find out for themselves in an inappropriate manner.
Wairimu also noted that teachers are also unwilling to talk to the young children, hence when they hold counselling sessions in the school, they alienate the young and only address pupils aged above 12 years.
The counsellor noted that many children do not engage in sexual behaviour with their counterparts but in most cases, adults in the society are the ones who take advantage of their naivety.
She said this is mostly common in the rural areas, because the children there have no access to expensive gifts thus are easily lured by the adults.
"Manipulations and sexual illiteracy has also led to increase in defilement and rape cases in the country which in turn breeds early pregnancies and marriages," said Wairimu.
The counsellor also said that nude and sexual implicative adverts and illustrations are everywhere in the media citing billboards, internet, television and films. She said parents cannot be always on the lookout hence the rise of immoral behaviours in children.
The education officer in Kiambu Sub-County Mr Harrison Muriuki, said it’s important to not only give the pupils academic education but life skills, as they are the ones to guide one through their lives even at old age.
He added that in many schools, life skill lessons are taught during prep time normally by teachers covering other subjects like CRE.