Elders urged to step up in dealing with teenage pregnancy. [Photo: thisisafrica.me]
Elders in North Eastern have been urged to be more involved in dealing with the issues of teenage pregnancy in the area.
Girl child network secretary Zainab Harun appealed for counselling and sex education after an 18-year-old form two student who was four months pregnant committed suicide by hanging herself using a rope inside their house in Lagbadana, Madogo division Tana River County.
Harun who was addressing the press after the burial at a Muslim cemetery in Madogo said that elders should move with speed and resolve matters surrounding teenage pregnancies instead of ignoring them, putting more stress on the victims.
India Ismail, a student at Saka secondary school, Garissa County is alleged to have picked a quarrel with her mother on Saturday morning over the pregnancy that is believed to have led her to kill herself.
She said many girls in the region have dropped out of school, procured unsafe abortions, endured public ridicule and face an unstable economic future due to lack of proper guidance.
“Elders should intervene without ignoring victims involved in early pregnancies. India ended her life because she felt unwanted and suicide was the only solution out of her predicament,” Ms Zainab said.
She added that some of the children have been subjected to physical, psychological and emotional abuse and require support.