Call for input: Accelerating Progress Towards Preventing Adolescent Girls’ Pregnancy
Written by Roaa Hanieh
“Women are half of society and give birth to the other half, yet this responsibility must never be placed on them when they are still minors”
In today’s rapidly changing world, this topic is controversial because it intersects with cultural traditions, religious interpretations, economic conditions, and human rights principles. Adolescent pregnancy is defined by WHO as pregnancy in a girl between 10 and 19 which means their bodies have not fully developed yet and this might lead to serious health complications that may threaten their lives and the babies lives. In addition, early pregnancy has a deep negative impact on the mental health of minors such as anxiety, depression and the loss of their childhood.
Case study: Jordan is considered one of the countries with moderate to low rates of adolescent pregnancy. however, the Syrian refugee crisis led to an increase in child marriage and pregnancy rates between 2010 and 2015, reaching approximately 18% in 2015. This rate then declined again by 2019 to 10.6%.
Recommendations:
1- Adopt a youth and adolescent-girl led national action plan co-written with minor girls and young people, to define their priorities.
2– Strengthen legal accountability to prevent under-age pregnancy below legal threshold including any exceptional marriage provisions.
3– Guarantee girls’ uninterrupted education and tackle the structural drivers of early pregnancy by preventing school dropout and enabling re-entry at any age.
