Cultural beliefs and lack of access to information on sexual and reproductive health services have been attributed to as the major contributing factors to early pregnancies and high rate of school drop outs among the youth in the country.
Making the revelation during a half day information dissemination workshop at St. Michael’s Primary School of Ekwendeni Zone in Mzimba, Family Planning Association of Malawi – FPAM, said out of 94 percent of young boys and girls who complete primary school education, only 17 percent of them proceed to secondary school as the rest drop out due early pregnancies and early marriages among other factors.
The findings of the research; which explored factors affecting access to sexual and reproductive health services for learners in primary and secondary schools in Malawi, further revealed that at least 82 percent of learners have information about sexual and reproductive health services but only 8 percent of them have comprehensive knowledge about the same.
The research, which was conducted in Mzimba, Dedza and Machinga districts in October last year, laid bare the fact that learners wish to access such services from health facilities but they fear being rebuked by health personnel since they are regarded as being too young to indulge in sexual activities.
Speaking during the workshop, Head of health services at FPAM, Noel Maulidi, said the findings of the research were views of the learners they interviewed and not of the organisation.
“So, you can see that our learners in the schools already have information about sexual and reproductive health issues only that they do not express themselves openly before their parents or teachers, for the fear being reprimanded” said Maulidi.
Sharing similar sentiments, councillor for Ekwendeni Ward, Morgan Tembo, said as much as learners have to abstain from indulging in sexual activities, there has to be sufficient information and services to guide their choices.
Among other participants at the meeting were chiefs, religious leaders, teachers, mother groups as well as learners.