The Akuapem South Municipality is gradually becoming the hub of teenage pregnancy with little or no practical measures to control the rate at which the canker is gaining ground.
The Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) of the area, Frank Aidoo, revealed that the municipality had recorded 101 teenage pregnancy cases between January and June this year.
The statistics, which depicts that the municipality records almost 17 teenage pregnancies every month, is a serious slap in the face towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goal 3 (SDG3) of the Millennium Development Goal 2030.
Goal 3.7 of the SDG indicates that by 2030 there should be universal access to sexual and reproductive healthcare services, including family planning, information and education, and the integration of reproductive health into national strategies and programmes.
The Akuapem South MCE has passionately called on all stakeholders, including traditional leaders, religious leaders, and parents on this critical stage to help in the fight against minimising the menace in their communities.
Mr. Aidoo disclosed that, plans were far advanced to embark on sensitisation programmes to educate parents in the municipality to be responsible so that their young girls would desist from chasing “Okada Boys” for daily bread, which has been the major cause of the menace.
“I, therefore, humbly call on all [and] sundry to prioritise the future and education of the girl-child in the Municipality,” he said.
The Mayor of the Akuapem South Municipality averred that “it has been observed from the data provided by the GHS, Aburi, that the menace of teenage pregnancy is still pending and on the rise, which needs urgently required strategies to be put in place to help address the issue of safeguarding the future of our girls.”
He continued that early pregnancies among adolescents had major health consequences for adolescent mothers and their babies, a situation that could jeopardise the future of these young mothers and their children.
He further stated that “early child breeding can increase risks for newborns, as well as young mothers. Babies born to mothers under 20 years of age face higher risks of low birth weight, pre-term delivery, and severe neonatal conditions.”
Recalling how the menace had greeted the municipality over the years, he stated that the area recorded 187, 210 and 197 cases in 2020, 2021 and 2022 respectively.
In a breakdown, Mr. Aidoo stressed that, Aburi recorded 29 cases, Brekuso 19, Pakro 10, whilst Pokro and Obotwere recorded 32 and 11 respectively.
