On average, 700 girls are impregnated each year in The Bahamas. Twenty percent of these teen mothers have another child while they are still in their teens according to the president of the PACE Foundation, Sonia Brown.
We are urging citizens to take a stand and educate our children about contraceptives and the irresponsibility and lack of knowledge that leads to teenage pregnancy.
Most teens that have children find it harder to become a part of the work force because their time is more focused on their child.
They are less prepared to enter the working world because they are ill prepared due to being forced to be adults at a young age. Thus, not completing school in most instances.
When they enter the job market these teens need assistance with day care and other services that they are often unable to afford due to their minimum wage jobs that they barely qualify for.
Unplanned teenage pregnancies can lead to higher high school dropout rates, higher rates of single parenthood, and lowering scores in math and reading.
Stopping teenage pregnancy requires a hands-on connection between parents and children, a good educational foundation, and unbiased resources.
The COB Gazette is campaigning for:
*Teaching Sex Education to Stop Teenage Pregnancy
Government officials claim that their efforts to fight teenage pregnancy is that they already have parenthood sessions in government schools but those are not effective enough because we still have a large number of teenage pregnancies in The Bahamas today. Sex education starts in the home as well.
Parents should begin introducing the subject of puberty and sex with their children at around age 5. At first these discussions are more based on the relationships between the sexes.
Schools also teach teens about the chances and effects of teenage pregnancies, though the approach will depend on each school. Teens have hormones raging through their bodies and often misunderstand how