More Education Means (Much) Less Teenage Pregnancies Here

Teenage pregnancies have decreased drastically since 2018 in Kenya, a new report shows.

“38 percent of girls without education levels were found to be pregnant while only five percent of girls in higher education were found to be pregnant. This highlights the importance of investing in education and ensuring that girls have access to quality education to empower them and enable them to make informed decisions about their lives and future,” says Dollarman Natse, Project Officer and Youth Coordinator at the Center for the Study of Adolescence in Kenya.

In 2018, there were 427,297 recorded pregnancies in girls between the ages of 10 and 19. In 2022, the number stood at only 260,442 adolescents. The report, completed by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics, noted a strong link between poverty, education level, and teenage pregnancies. The number of adolescent pregnancies is likely decreasing in part thanks to more sex education information being provided in schools, churches, and online to both young boys and girls. Though more is needed to further prevent unwanted teenage pregnancies within Kenya, the country has made significant progress in recent years.