According to data from the Ghana Health Service District Health Information Management System as of April 30, 2021, it shows that the Upper East Region recorded 1632 teenage pregnancies in the first quarter of this year representing a 14.5 percent increase over figures recorded in 2020 which recorded a total of 6533 for the whole year.
For the district and municipal breakdown, Bawku West lead the table with 207 teenage pregnancy cases followed by Talensi with 162, Pusiga 152, Bongo 150, Bolgatanga 139, Kasena Nankana West 120, Bawku 112, Kasena Nankana 109. The rest are Garu with 105 reported cases of teenage pregnancies, Tempane 94, Binduri 71, Builsa South 68, Nabdam 63, Builsa North 52 and Bolgatanga East recording 35 cases.
This was revealed at a review meeting for 50 Peer Educators on sexual and reproductive health rights in six districts organized by the National Youth Authority NYA and the Upper East Regional Coordinating Council under the auspices of the government of Ghana and the UNFPA 2018-2022 country programme.
In his welcome address, the Upper East Regional Director for the National Youth Authority Francis Takyi Koranteng observed with the current trend, the future of the country is in limbo. Teenage pregnancy, young single mother issues and unwarranted sex-related deaths are on the ascendency especially as a result of the COVID 19 induced restrictions with its job losses and the bottleneck surrounding the smooth flow of goods and services.
He encouraged the 50 peer educators from the Builsa South, Kasena Nankana west, Bongo, Talensi, Nabdam and Bawku West to collaborate with health workers and community members to intensify information dissemination and provision of Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights services for adolescents.
Mr. Takyi Koranteng further urged them to create a platform at the community level for all stakeholders to appreciate the traditional phenomenon that hinders young people’s access to these resources. The Upper East Region was ranked 7th in the national ranking for the year 2020 relative to the number of teenage pregnancies recorded.
Apexnewsgh.com/Ghana/Ngamegbulam Chidozie Stephen
