'harmonise policies in health education ministries'

By SITEMBILE SIWAWA

GOVERNMENT needs to harmonise policies in the Ministries of Health and Education (MOE) to address imbalances in the accessibility of contraceptives by older school- going children, says Young Women Christian Association (YWCA).

YWCA national health project coordinator JaniConred said in an interview during the week that Government should address the policies on accessibility of contraceptives by school going children who are 14 years and older.

Mr Conred said the current policy by the Ministry of Education on contraceptives is that a school child below the age of 14 cannot have access to contraceptives yet the Ministry of Health offers the facility to whoever is in need regardless of the age.

He said: "It is better for the two ministries to harmonise their policies and ensure that the sexual and reproductive health of the girl and boy child are looked into".

He said a girl child below the age of 14 is at risk of falling pregnant and contracting diseases like HIV/AIDS and STIs.

Children who in the age group of 14 are usually below grade 10 but those in higher grades such as 10, 11 and 12 get to have money to buy contraceptives.

Mr Conred said it is a fact that school going children are indulging in sexual activities and it cannot be ignored and therefore it was important that contraceptives are given to them to lessen the levels of teen pregnancies and unsafe abortions.

He also said there is need for the youths to be informed of the availability of youth friendly health care services where they can get information on matters relating to their sexual and reproductive health.

"Many youths in the communities are not aware of the existence of youth friendly health care facilities due to little information by the service providers", he said.

Meanwhile, Mr Conred said stigmatisation and discrimination are the leading causes of youths shunning the health centres to get information on their health.

He said it is against our African culture for a child to be seen to have access to the same health facility as their parent.

"Sometimes young people themselves and health care providers stigmatise people they see going to the clinics to access contraceptives or antiretroviral drugs and view them as immoral", he said.