The Sunday Mail
Fungai Lupande
FORTY-EIGHT learners who dropped out of school for various reasons, including teen pregnancy, have been followed up and re-integrated into schools in Rushinga District, Mashonaland Central.
Rushinga has been one of the districts worst affected by child marriages.
However, there is now consensus between parents, traditional leaders and young people in the area that no child under 18 will be married off.
The Ministries of Health and Child Care, and Primary and Secondary Education are working with chiefs and development partners to support and give a second chance to these learners.
Circular P35 of the education sector allows pregnant learners to continue with their education.
This has created renewed hope among those that have been affected.
Chief Nyakusengwa is leading the fight against child marriages in in Rushinga district and is working with various stakeholders to facilitate the return of pregnant girls to school. who had to stamp his foot down against the archaic cultural practice of marrying off young girls.
Parents who pay lobola for a young girl and the family that receives the money are both guilty and will have to explain their case to the police.
The district is stepping up guidance and counselling programmes in order to sensitise learners.
Rushinga District learner welfare officer Mr Webster Jasi said comprehensive sex education and life skills programmes are part of the school curriculum.
“We made sure that the 48 learners received psycho-social support and their peers received counselling to ensure that the re-integration process is smooth and comfortable,” he said.
“The learners were identified after schools in the district provided information to the authorities. We then engaged the police, social welfare and members of the district child protection.
“We made follow-ups and took some of the children to places of safety created by the Department of Social Welfare. Social welfare is training foster parents and if we feel that a child is not safe, we take her/him to a place of safety while facilitating placement at a school.”
The majority of the 48 learners have become peer educators and are involved in various adolescent clubs at their schools.
Mr Jasi said guidance and counselling in most schools was not being done effectively, hence the need to strengthen comprehensive sexual reproductive health systems.
“Our guidance and counselling programme seeks to achieve three Hs (head, heart and hand). We did a baseline survey with Save the Children (NGO) and realised that school drop-outs were due to unintended pregnancies, lack of interest in education and drug abuse.”
He said Chapinduka, Nyamuzeya, Magaranhewe and Rushinga high schools had the highest number of drop-outs.
Schools in the district have now come up with home-grown child protection policies.
The 72-hour gender-based response rooms (GBV rooms) were created in schools to create a clear referral pathway for learners in need of services. It is understood that this platform helped to follow up on learners who had dropped out of school due to pregnancies.
“We conducted community dialogue with parents, local and traditional leaders. We identified all the cases of school drop-outs . . .” Mr Jasi said.
A clear link between Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education, and the Ministry of Health and Child Care was created through the adolescent sexual reproductive health programme.
Cases that needed the attention of the Ministry of Health and Child Care were transmitted from the GBV room to Tanaka Clinic — a youth-only adolescent clinic that was established to cater for the needs and concerns of young people.
The district nursing officer, Mr Amon Dhlana, said the clinic is a youth-friendly facility that provides private and confidential health services for young people.
“The initiative started with young people who did not feel comfortable to be attended at the adult clinic,” he said.
“Youths in Rushinga exhibit a high level of knowledge compared to other districts. The district was bedevilled by high rates of child marriages and the adolescent sexual reproductive health programme by SAfAIDS is aimed at reducing child marriage and school drop-outs.”
Sister Risaphael Zishiri who works at Tanaka Clinic, which was constructed last year, said the health facility is short-staffed and some parents are avoiding it because they believe it teaches their children about sex.
“We provide the youth with post-rape care, breast cancer screening, circumcision, diet and nutrition.
“Youth are impatient and they are attended to at the shortest space of time. We don’t talk about sex to a child who is not sexually active,” she said.
Development Aid from People to People (DAPP), who are a partner in the programme, said they assisted in resourcing a youth centre in Chimhanda to prevent youths from spending their time in beerhalls.
The centre has a pool table, table tennis, darts, Wi-Fi and a television.
“Youths frequent beerhalls to watch soccer and play games and it was necessary to provide them with a facility with the same equipment where they cannot interact with adults,” said DAPP representative Mr Kudakwashe Chimanga.
At the centre of the fight against child marriage is Chief Nyakusengwa, who had to stamp his foot down against the archaic cultural practice of marrying off young girls.
According to him, parents who pay lobola for a young girl and the family that receives the money are both culpable of abuse.
“Times have changed and it is no longer acceptable to turn back a girl child for coming home late. This exposes our children to all kinds of abuse. When your child falls pregnant, both parents must come together and make sure she continues with her education,” he said.
“Rushinga District is known for high cases of child marriages. Child marriage cases are not presided over by the chief, we refer cases to the police.
“Technology has exposed children to content that lead them into engaging in sexual activities. I want to thank Government for allowing pregnant learners to return to school. Some children are failing to continue with their education because of non-payment of school fees by parents.”
Mr Nakai Nengomasha from SAfAIDS, said the adolescent reproductive health and rights programme has established gender-based violence mechanisms in four schools, a resource centre in Chimhanda and a youth-friendly clinic.
“Rushinga District has many challenges, including rigid social norms which promote inter-generation marriages, school drop-outs and gender-based violence.
“Learners travel long distances to school and some resorted to makeshift accommodation known as bush boarders,” he said.
“This has exposed learners to abuse. However, we have noticed a decline in school drop-outs and a number of children are interested in coming back to school.”
