According to the United Nations Population Fund, over seven million girls below the age of 18 get pregnant worldwide. A Demographic and Health Survey by International Children Fund (2010), indicates that 6% of girls in Rwanda aged between 15 and 19 are either pregnant or single mothers looking after babies. But that is not the worst news.

More worrying, according to studies, is the fact that pregnancy and child birth are now the leading cause of death in developing countries for girls between 15 and 19 years of age. To be more specific, over 70,000 girls succumb to death resulting from pregnancy-related causes every year.

These early pregnancies, according to a survey by Education Times, have also affected students who are below 18 years of age both in Rwanda and the region. In fact, 26 students were recently suspended from a Christian university in Uganda for being pregnant and yet not married.

Fortunately in Rwanda, the approach is different and government must be commended for that. In line with its policy to promote girl-child education, government encourages schools to be more understanding when handling such cases. And all the teachers who talked to his paper agree that after giving birth, a student should resume studies which is fair enough. 

But let’s face it: teen pregnancies are not the best thing we need for the development of our country because it can have dire consequences for both the individual and country as our lead story demonstrates.

So what’s the solution? Well, as a number of teachers noted, parents must get more involved in their children’s lives and open up about sexual matters. The government and its partners should also unceasingly educate the public especially students the benefit of doing things at the right time.

Teenage pregnancies are avoidable, so let us all join hands to save our children.