By Anita Dangazele
Over 4,000 schoolgirls have already given birth in the Eastern Cape this year, highlighting just how big this crisis has become.
The provincial health department said 3,961 of the girls who have given birth in the first seven months of the year are aged 15 to 19, while 94 girls are aged 10 to 14.
Health MEC Ntandokazi Capa visited Zwelitsha Senior Secondary School in Gxwaleni village, Ntabankulu, on Wednesday. The school had the highest number of teenage pregnancies in 2023 and 2024.
Capa said the school had 27 pregnant learners last year and 19 known cases of pregnancies this year. Another 13 girls who dropped out this year are also believed to be pregnant.
The pregnant learners at this school are between 13 and 16 years old.
Capa said they would contact their partners to see if they could get funds to establish youth zones in these areas.
Youth zones are teenage-friendly areas within clinic facilities where teenagers can speak freely to nurses about their health issues.
Eastern Cape education spokesperson Malibongwe Mtima said the department has different programmes to prevent teenage pregnancies and school dropouts.
“The department has peer support groups where schoolchildren can open up to each other and reach out where needed to get help without having awkward or uncomfortable interactions with teachers or adults,” Mtima said.
Pictured above: Eastern Cape Health MEC Ntandokazi Capa during her visit to Zwelitsha Senior Secondary School in Ntabankulu.
Source: Supplied
