There are nearly 10 million adolescents in Kenya. Out of these 10 million, over 60% attend public or private schools for at least 8 hours a day during the most crucial and critical years of their intellectual, physical, social and emotional development. Apart from the family, Schools are the main places responsible for the development and growth of adolescents and young people.
In Kenya, one in every 4 youths aged 15 to 24 years reported sexual debut before the age of 15. A lot of adolescents and young people engage in risky sexual behaviors that can result to unintended health outcomes. Only 11% of women aged 15 to 24 years and 43% for young men in the same age group reported condom use consistently with partners of unknown HIV status in the past 12 months. Risky sexual behaviors place adolescents at risk for HIV infection and other Sexually Transmitted Infections, as well as for unintended pregnancies.
1 out of 4 Kenyan teenage adolescent girls between the ages of 15 to 18 years have already begun child bearing. Young people also account for 45% of all new HIV infection. Furthermore, 16% of all people living with HIV are adolescents and young people.
Research has shown that a well designed and implemented School based age appropriate comprehensive sexuality education can help adolescents adopt lifelong attitudes and behaviors that support their overall health and well-being including those that reduce their risk for HIV and other sexually transmitted infections and unintended pregnancy. Comprehensive sexuality education may help delay sexual intercourse, reduce the number of sex partners, increase condom or contraceptive use and increase HIV testing.
Information on sexual and reproductive health and rights should be made available to adolescents in schools to help them understand their sexuality and protect themselves from unintended pregnancies, HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. I call upon the ministry of education and the ministry of health both at county and national level to implement the National Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health policy of 2015 to the latter. One of the key objectives of this policy is to enhance equitable access to high quality, efficient and effective adolescent friendly Sexual and Reproductive Health information. Empowering adolescents with information on Sexual and Reproductive Health is a life-time investment that is likely to have positive effects on behavior and lifestyle during the entire course of their life.
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