BLANTYRE (MaraviPost) – The news from Migowi Day Secondary School in Phalombe District is not good: 11 students have been impregnated.
“It’s terrible, this is retrogressive to the advancement of girl education in Malawi,” headteacher of the school, Duniweck Chinawa, told Mana.
The girls have since dropped out of school without any action taken on those responsible for the pregnancies.
Only three girls dropped out in 2010, while in 2013, only four got pregnant and this year is the highest number of girls dropping out due to pregnancy, according to Mana.
The school has no boarding facilities, as is the case with many others across the poor country whose education standards are shoddy.
Due to poverty, most students are forced to walk long distances to attend classes, and those who can afford poor boarding facilities, the risks of falling into prey of men are great as the girls seek cash to finance themselves.
Half of the 15 million Malawians earn less than a dollar a day, which makes Malawi one of the poorest countries on earth.
