SA has highest teenage pregnancy rate globally - WHO
Summary
TLDRThe World Health Organization report highlights South Africa's alarming teenage pregnancy rates, with one in five girls falling pregnant before 20. The script discusses socio-economic factors, such as poverty and substance abuse, contributing to this issue. It emphasizes the importance of comprehensive sex education and the role of community structures in addressing these challenges. The conversation features insights from the LoveLife organization, which engages with young people to equip them with skills to navigate these issues and gauges the success of its programs through research and community feedback.
Takeaways
- 🌍 South Africa has one of the highest rates of teenage pregnancy globally, with one in five girls becoming pregnant before turning 20.
- 📈 There is an increase in HIV among girls aged 15 to 19, indicating a worrying trend in the country's youth.
- 💔 Socio-economic issues, particularly poverty, are a significant factor contributing to teenage pregnancy.
- 💰 Transactional sex is mentioned as a contributing factor, where young girls may engage in sexual activities for material gains.
- 👨👧 The lack of negotiation skills and the desire for material benefits can lead to unprotected sex and increased vulnerability.
- 🚫 Substance abuse among teenagers is another contributing factor, with intoxication reducing the ability to make safe decisions.
- 👦 The conversation also needs to include boys and men, who are often the perpetrators in these situations.
- 👶 The impact of young boys becoming fathers at a young age is highlighted, causing emotional distress and a lack of support.
- 🏫 Resistance from some school governing bodies to comprehensive sex education is a challenge in addressing these issues.
- 🏛 The role of community structures, including the church, is crucial in supporting education and programs for young people.
- 📊 Love Life measures the success of their programs through research and feedback from the community and stakeholders.
Q & A
What is the main concern highlighted in the World Health Organization report about South Africa?
-The report highlights that South Africa has one of the highest rates of teenage pregnancy globally, with one in five girls getting pregnant before they turn 20.
What factors contribute to the high rate of teenage pregnancy in South Africa according to the discussion?
-Socio-economic issues such as poverty, lack of education, and substance abuse are major contributing factors. Transactional sex and peer pressure also play a role.
How does poverty affect teenage girls' vulnerability to pregnancy in South Africa?
-Poverty leads to a lack of resources and education, making girls more vulnerable to men who use material things to lure them into sexual relationships, often without proper negotiation skills or condom use.
What role does substance abuse play in the increase of teenage pregnancy and HIV among young people?
-Substance abuse impairs judgment and increases the influence of peers, leading to unprotected sexual encounters and a higher risk of sexually transmitted infections, including HIV.
What is the significance of the 'Boy Child' program mentioned in the discussion?
-The 'Boy Child' program is designed to engage young boys in conversations about their roles, the effects of becoming young parents, and to address the issue of men taking advantage of teenage girls.
How does the script differentiate between the impact of young boys and older men on teenage pregnancy?
-The script suggests that older men are more likely to have the intention of impregnating teenage girls, whereas young boys are more likely to be involved in peer relationships without the same level of intention.
What challenges do educators and community structures face in disseminating sexual education?
-Some school governing bodies resist comprehensive sex education, and there is often a taboo against parents discussing these issues with their children, leading to a lack of support and understanding.
How does Love Life approach the issue of teenage pregnancy and HIV?
-Love Life engages in various programs such as the 'Boy Child' program, adolescent youth-friendly services, and community activations to educate and support young people in understanding and managing these issues.
What is the role of parents in addressing teenage pregnancy and HIV among their children?
-Parents are encouraged to follow their children's education trends, engage in conversations about school work and projects, and seek help from community leaders or Love Life counselors to discuss these issues with their children.
How does Love Life measure the success of its programs?
-Love Life uses research and measurement tools to assess the impact of their programs on the lives of young people, involving stakeholders and collecting success stories to gauge effectiveness.
Outlines
😔 Socioeconomic Factors and Teenage Pregnancy in South Africa
The first paragraph discusses the alarming rate of teenage pregnancy in South Africa, as reported by the World Health Organization. It highlights that one in five girls become pregnant before the age of 20, with a concurrent increase in HIV among the same age group. The conversation in the studio with Dilara Ladi, a love life manager, delves into the contributing factors, such as poverty and socio-economic issues, which make young girls vulnerable to transactional sex and exploitation. The lack of negotiating skills and the influence of peer pressure, especially when substance abuse is involved, further increase the risk of unprotected sex and the spread of STIs. The dialogue also touches on the importance of addressing the role of adult men in impregnating teenage girls and the need for conversations with young boys about the consequences of early parenthood.
😕 The Impact of Early Fatherhood and Accountability Among Men
The second paragraph continues the discussion on teenage pregnancy, focusing on the effects of young boys becoming fathers and the emotional distress they face due to the lack of support and guidance. It contrasts the typical relationships between young boys and girls, which are often about socializing and future discussions, with the intentional actions of older men who take advantage of young girls. The paragraph emphasizes the need for accountability among men and the role of various societal structures, such as the education system, communities, and the church, in disseminating information about sexual education. It also points out the challenges faced by these structures in providing comprehensive sex education due to resistance and taboos, and the importance of parental involvement in these conversations.
🌟 Love Life's Initiatives and Measuring Program Success
The final paragraph outlines the various initiatives undertaken by Love Life to address the issues of teenage pregnancy and sexual education. It describes the organization's youth-friendly services, which provide a dedicated space for young people at clinics, and its out-of-school programs that engage with youth in various community settings. The paragraph also discusses the importance of measuring the success of these programs through research and stakeholder feedback, ensuring that the impact is both traceable and significant. The summary concludes with an appreciation for the work done by Love Life and its commitment to changing lives through education and support.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Teenage Pregnancy
💡World Health Organization
💡HIV
💡Socioeconomic Issues
💡Transactional Sex
💡Negotiating Skills
💡Substance Abuse
💡Comprehensive Sex Education
💡Love Life
💡Accountability
💡Youth-Friendly Services
Highlights
South Africa has one of the highest rates of teenage pregnancy globally.
One in five girls in South Africa get pregnant before turning 20.
HIV rates have increased among girls aged 15 to 19.
Socio-economic issues like poverty contribute to teenage pregnancy.
Transactional sex is a factor in teenage pregnancy due to socio-economic pressures.
Lack of negotiating skills in young girls makes them vulnerable to unprotected sex and exploitation.
Substance abuse among teenagers increases the risk of unprotected sex and HIV.
The Boy Child program engages young boys in discussions about the effects of early parenthood.
Adult men, not teenage boys, are primarily responsible for impregnating teenage girls.
Men with money are often implicated in taking advantage of young girls.
Comprehensive sex education in schools faces resistance from some school governing bodies.
Comprehensive sex education should cover biological changes and appropriate responses.
Community and religious structures play a crucial role in supporting sexual education programs.
Parents need to engage in conversations with their children about sexual education based on their maturity.
Love Life provides support for parents and communities through counseling and educational programs.
Love Life's programs aim to impact young people's lives positively, focusing on one person at a time.
Love Life's adolescent youth-friendly services create a dedicated space for young people at clinics.
The success of Love Life's programs is measured through research and community feedback.
Transcripts
a World Health Organization report
states that South Africa has one of the
highest rates of teenage pregnancy
globally researched by the health agency
shows that one in five girls get
pregnant before they turn 20 at the same
time the report says HIV has increased
among girls between the ages of 15 and
19 for more on this rather worrying
conversation we joined in Studio by love
life haing manager dilar Ladi who is in
studio Tilly very good evening thanks so
much W for speaking to
us this stat is is most worrying one in
five teenage girls falling pregnant by
the time they're 20 well at the end of
19 I suppose um what do we attribute
to well uh thank you and good evening to
to you and the the viewers at home uh
it's a woring
issue because we would have been
thinking of the statistic going down at
this time but now sadly the St statistic
is increasing and if you just look at
the statistic that you have indicated um
we are not winning this war and we know
through our observation is love life
that we there are still uh many
attributing factors to these issues
firstly it's socio economic issues like
poverty we cannot avoid that it's it's a
fact that um so are you are you then
suggesting that
when we talk poverty I'm sorry to
interject it might suggest that it's is
is it a values issue or is it an issue
of uh let me go out let me these young
girls are receiving uh money in exchange
for for sexual
FS there is transactional sex but we
don't want to start there that's why I
say social social economic issues it
start with how we are socializing how we
are living these young girls are in in
in in a family where where they don't
have much H to afford and then she goes
out and then she becomes vulnerable to
these guys or man who knows what to do
who uses material things to L them and
then they don't have much negotiating
skills because they're looking forward
at what they can get and if you're
looking forward to what you can get from
these men what are the chances of
negotiating the use of condoms the the
thinking or the discussion about
postponing or pronging the the the
actual sexual intercourse you don't have
much chance so so then you get into this
sexual intercourse or relationship or
transaction hoping to get something to
address social issues that you're going
through in your family or in your social
life that is what is exposing our young
people as well poverty and we cannot
avoid to talk about substance
abuse you know there is a
teenage pressure a peer pressure amongst
young people where they go out they
prize each other and then they engage in
substance abuse and we know that when
you're intoxicated the level of
reasoning would change the level of
influence from others would increase and
then the chances of yourself being
exposed become vulnerable to sexual
intercourse or sexual relationship
increases as well and how much do you
have a a strength to negotiate the use
of condoms and if in the absence of use
of condoms we talking about sexual
transmitted infections we're talking
about HIV and age that we've just seen
the the states and then teenage
pregnancy comes in the play so that's
the situation we're going through as as
a country Ty that's that's one half of
the equation and and it's one half
because we've talked about the the girl
child we've talked about females but
let's talk about the men let's talk
about the boys you know the the
perpetrators uh the men who are making
these young girls pregnant what are the
conversations that we should be having
with them or what is their reasoning
right in having unprotected sex or
abusing or taking advantage of teenage
girls you know my example was very much
intentional when I talk about men who
have money because what we we are
starting to do is to have conversation
with young we have a program called The
Boy Child program because we have
realized that we are having these
programs engaging girls engaging women
but we are living behind this young boy
who also is going through a lot so the
statistics will tell you that amongst
these young boys it's only you know not
even a quarter of them impregnating the
teenagers it's adults who are imp
preting and in you know last time we're
talking about Educators who who have
been they registered from the system
because they are also part of the of the
problem so we have a program designed to
talk to young young young boys to just
engage them on who they are what are the
effects of them becoming young parents
at that age of teenagehood as well and
we have very very pictorial examples
that we have on the ground where we have
young young boys going through emotional
distress because of becoming a father at
that age and they don't know who to talk
to in most int and that's where we come
in a love
life I'm glad you raise that issue
because I had a conversation on on us
Africa with with a gentleman who does
similar work to to what you do in fact
uh he speaks to Young juvenile uh
delinquents so those that are within the
the prison system and that have
perpetrated all all sorts of crime and
and he gave the example of himself and
he says he didn't know his father until
he was 14 at which time he went to look
for his father and his father was not
interested but when he went to look for
his father he was told that well you are
you the 20th uh who's come to this man
claiming to to be his son or or his or
his daughter which which raises the the
question
around accountability by men uh and you
talk just now about well there is
frustration and there is threats for
these young people but how big a
percentage are the youngsters that are
making these uh young women pregnant
versus
the the older men you know people like
uh you and I that are going there and
and taking advantage of these young
girls a typical relationship of a young
boy and a young girl would involve them
socializing engaged in you know future
discussions engag in educational you
know aspects of of their life that's a
that's a normal relationship of a young
boy and a young girl that is why
statistic will tell you that this young
boys are less compared to adult or to
men who are pregnan young girls because
they come with intention the older men
come with intention and the young ones
the peers are engaged in in Intimate
relationship discussing about themselves
finding who they are and where they are
going that is why the number is very low
and and hence those that are involved in
impregnating teenagers as teenagers we
get them very much in affected by by by
by social issues or mental health issues
so so so the men older men are the
problem here so so love life obviously
equ Crypts these young people with
certain skill sets certain certain
information but you you can't be
everywhere right so let's talk about the
the education system let's talk about
communities let's talk about the church
and and and other structures how
effective are they as a tool of
disseminating issues around sexual
education are they disseminating the
right information are they answering the
right
questions it's a long journey you know
quite to be quite honest with you we we
we have a
challenge that uh when we talk about
comprehensive uh sex education at
schools we find challenge with some
school governing bodies ER resisting
that kind of approach to Learners at
schools then it tells you how much
support they can give to learners they
resistant to comprehensive sex education
what is comprehensive what what what
does it mean if it's comprehensive
comprehensive sex education would would
mean that we are talking about who they
are biologically what happens when as a
young boy you start having
erections what are the signs what do you
do when you have these signs and and
when you are a young girl what happens
when you start developing breast or
pubic ass so it's a comprehensive it's
like a detailed kind of an education
that when they get this education if
they have to go home and continue the
engagement with parents then because
they there's still a taboo of parents
talking to to young people then it's
where did you get this I
personally three months ago I'm sure at
a shop I was confronted by a a white
male who said yeah you work for love
life because you saw my C I said yes sir
and he engaged about why are you
teaching our people our youngsters these
issues at school we don't agree with
this so you can see the Gap it's still
huge then the role of community and this
other structures it's quite challenging
because we need them to buy in first
then they will be able to be supportive
in the education or programs that we
implementing as love life but I must
tell you there are other sectors of of
community structure that are very
supportive you know the church is it's
available they are very supportive
because they are exposed they understand
they have these young people under their
youth Wings where they see these mental
health challenges so we appreciate or
approach those kind of structures but
some it's being
difficult so where do where do parents
come in because I mean you do raise an
important issue and that is um what do
we say to our children when do we start
speaking to them uh and what are those
conversations right those conversation
mean the conversation that a that a
10-year-old is likely to have or should
be having versus a a 14-year-old
16-year-old obviously should be
different based on based on maturity and
based on the fact that young people like
to like to experiment so just what
information is enough information
depending on the on the age of of the
minor that you're dealing with we we are
very lucky Community today because these
young people they can lead you as a
parent they are very they as a lot of
questions but the the first approach
follow their Trends the their the the
their their school work and look at what
they getting as homeworks or or projects
that's how you start talking to them you
can see the level of Education they're
receiving at their at their grades then
that's where you can start by asking a
question do you understand this how far
how far do you know this you know you
can then level your your discussion with
a child that way but we do have parents
who are illiterate as well we always
advise identifying somebody in the
family who who have a skill to approach
young people to speak to we have
Community leaders you can engage with
them to say I have this challenge I'm
milit but I can see my children are
growing up and they need this
information that's how you can approach
it we are there as love life you just
send us a please call me 083 323 1023
and speak to one of our counselors who
would then approach very well these
young people telephonically and address
these issues
even advise you on how to approach
speaking to to to to to your children so
T we've we've talked about one aspect of
what love life does let's let's talk
about the organization and the impact
that you're making on on various
communities uh across across the
country we we are making a huge
impact uh you know what what I always
talk to my team about to is to say if at
least one day in our our programs you
can make sure that one young person has
changed his or her life we have done
enough so if we are there at a given
clinic for 5 days we have our
implementers who we call them ground
Breakers and impinges who are there for
5 days at a clinic then they are
interacting with young people who are
coming to a clinic because we have a
program which is called adolescent youth
friendly Services where we have created
a youth zone where young people don't go
and C with old people they have a
specific space Zone where they go and
get their services there through our
ground breaker and a youngness who is
dedicated for young people so so this is
the impact that we are making every day
in the country where we have the
dedicated program for young people who
are going to clinics we have out of
school programs where we have you know
activations in communities we we go to
malls we go to Social Clubs where young
people are just recently we've been
doing Distributing condoms at par
we are having engagement with young
people and old people we asking
questions about condoms female condoms
what do we do so the impact that we're
making might not be visible to anybody
publicly but we know on the ground there
is a lot of impact that we are doing and
we do this through a variety of programs
even Sports programs that we're engaging
those who are at sports who are not
where we are at clinics but we go to the
way they are and then talk to them
before they start
practicing and during tournaments so the
impact is it's very much traceable and
very much
huge uh finally finally very very
quickly um how do you gauge the success
of your
programs we we we we will have a
measurement tools or a a a department
that is called programs and measurements
and design H where we do research after
a a period of implementation of our
programs we go on the ground and do
research to say how many people receive
our programs how
has impacted their lives and even
involve other stakeholders to say do
they know about love life have they
followed our programs what impacts are
they making and we have many successful
people who we are able to to produce
stories that they telling out of the
impact that they receive through our
programs TI appreciate your time thanks
so much for speaking to us
Посмотреть больше похожих видео
🇵🇭Philippines' teenage pregnancy the highest in Asia | Al Jazeera English
Panel Discussion: Teenage Pregnancy by MVA AM 1
The difference between healthy and unhealthy love | Katie Hood | TED
Permasalahan Kesehatan di Indonesia
Substance Abuse Prevention Conference 2019
Adolescent mental health - Moving forward after the pandemic | Thorhildur Halldorsdottir | TEDxBasel
5.0 / 5 (0 votes)