Two SHS final year students give birth, others pregnant

Two final year students of St. Fidelis Senior High Technical School in the Kwahu Afram Plains South District of the Eastern region who recently delivered and a seven month old pregnant student are struggling to cope with the compulsory boarding directive.

President Akufo-Addo directed that all final year Senior High School (SHS 3) students, together with SHS 2 Gold Track students who resumed academic exercise on 22nd June, 2020 to complete the academic calendar must be in the boarding house as a measure to control the spread of Coronavirus in schools.

However, due to the awkward situations the two final year students find themselves, they have not been able to resume academic work despite being willing to write the West Africa Senior High Certificate Examination (WASCE) starting this month.

But one of the lactating students on Tuesday wrote to the Headmaster of the School and copied the District Director of Education Service about her condition asking for permission to come to school from home to enable her take care of her child and at the same time partake in learning to prepare for the exams.

A family member of the student, told Starr News “she was a boarding student but got pregnant and delivered just before government reopened schools so it means we had to take her from the boarding to stay in the house. But because of the directive that all the students should stay in school she was not able to go because of the child. So we wrote a letter to the headmaster begging him to let her go to school from the house. So she has been going to the school just that she feels tired and always be sleeping in class because the baby doesn’t allow her to have enough sleep.”

Starr News has gathered that the lactating student has been betrothed to the man who impregnated her at Tease Community where she is cohabitating.

One other lactating student and a heavily pregnant student are, however, yet to report to school due to the unfavourable boarding directive.

Teenage pregnancy is prevalent in the Afram Plains area due to poverty and other socio-economic factors.

Many victims of teenage pregnancy are forced into marriages with the perpetrators by their parents.

The Chief Executive Officer of International Child Development Program (ICDP) Joyce Lanyo, says it is important for stakeholders in the District to ensure that the students are supported to write the exams and prevent being forced into marriage with the perpetrators.

ICDP which is implementing Partner for Girls Advocacy Alliance a project initiative of Plan International Ghana seeking to eradicate Child marriage and gender based violence said, many teenage girls are being forced into marriage at the expense of their education during such situations.

Source: Starr FM