The National Population Commission (NPC), on Wednesday, said teenage pregnancy has been identified as the biggest killer of young girls.

Festus Odimegwu, Chairman of the commission, represented by Adenike Ogunlewe, Lagos State Director of the NPC, said this at a press briefing in Lagos to mark the 2013 World Population Day.

Teenage mothers are defined as women, ages, 15-19 who have had children, or are currently pregnant.

The World Population Day is marked annually on every July 11, since 1987. Its 2013 theme is: ‘Focus is on Adolescent Pregnancy’.

“Though teenage pregnancy in Nigeria has shown a slow decline since 1990, there is still a need for heightened awareness as there are still many incidences of it,” said Odimegwu. “Early marriage, early sexual exposure and pregnancy, coupled with poor health services, put teenage girls at risk of sexual and reproductive health problems.

Teenage pregnancy not only imposes severe health and physiological strains on the baby and the teen mothers, but also has long term negative impacts on sustainable development efforts. It worsens the population and reproductive health situation and compromises genuine efforts to promote gender equity, educational attainment, family values and economic development. Negative impacts of teenage pregnancy include unsafe abortion, pregnancy related complications, poor ante-natal care, weak pelvic bones, high fertility rate, curtailment of educational attainment and unstable marital life.”

Odimegwu said that the teenage Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR) put at 0.82 per 1000 women in Nigeria was still high. He added that there was, therefore, a need to understand and combat the incidences of TP in the country.

“It is important to have a proper understanding of the root causes of teenage pregnancy,” he said. “Four major reasons are responsible for increase in teenage pregnancy. They are poverty, sexual abuse, ignorance and cultural and religious beliefs. These need to be addressed at a national level. It is imperative for Nigeria to implement national and international conventions that seek to curtail teenage pregnancy.”

Odimegwu said that the General Assembly of the World Health Organisation (WHO) had in May, 2011 adopted a resolution urging member states to accelerate actions to improve the health of young people. He said that the resolution included specific measures to review and revise policies to protect young people from early child bearing.

He said that the resolution also included the provision of access to contraception and reproductive healthcare services, as well as promoting access to accurate information on sexual and reproductive health.

Katsina has highest rate of teenage pregnancy in Nigeria

In Nigeria, pregnancy and motherhood tend to mark the end of school attendance and by age 16, 23% female adolescent are either pregnant or have given birth.

The causes of early sexual activity are many. Teenagers face daily pressure from peers, they are exposed to the influence of television, the music industry and the internet, and are mostly too inexperienced to handle the consequences of pregnancy.

According to the NPC, there are more pregnant teenagers in Katsina State than anywhere else in Nigeria.

Records show Katsina accounting for 65 percent of teenage pregnancy in the country, while Edo State recorded the least percentage of 2.9.

“Teenage pregnancy varies markedly in the Northern and Southern zones, as well as urban and rural areas,” Odimegwu said, “They are higher in the Northern geo-political zone’s rural areas. One in every three teenage girls in the North has started child bearing in 2008, compared to one in every 10 in the South.”


According to this World Bank chart, the percentage of Nigerian girls who are teenage mothers fell from 25.2 at the turn of the century, to 22.9 almost a decade later.

According to a World Bank report, the percentage of girls who are teenage mothers in Nigeria stood at 22.9 in 2008.



source

Thank our lucky stars for ABORTION 'CHEMISTS'!
Or other forms of 'birth control' . . .!
Say no to BASTARDS!

Who wanno carry belle for 'customers'?

NO MARRIAGE. . . NO PREGNANCY!
Your bastard gets 'flushed'!

Mu che che che che che che

Abortion doctors must be doing really well there..

My thoughts exactly. The undocumented cases are there as well.

NPC should also update us on the rate of abortions in the various states. I bet Edo state will top the list too.

obyrich: NPC should also update us on the rate of abortions in the various states. I bet Edo state will top the list too.

they couldn't possibly know that as it is illegal in Nigeria

Lowest pregnancy rate=> Highest Immorality rate(Prostitution)