Dr. Mathew Opoku Prempeh, Educational Minister
Statistics available to the Ghana Health Service indicate that teachers in Central Region were responsible for 301 out of the 13,355 teenage pregnancies in the region in the year 2016, representing six percent of teenage pregnancies.
The 13,355 figure is a slight drop from the previous year’s figure of over 14,000 teenage pregnancies recorded in the region.
It was also revealed that 837 of the respondents, representing 16.4% of the teenagers, did not know the profession of the men who impregnated them.
The acting Regional Director of Ghana Health Service, Dr Stephen Anyomi, made this known during the regional health performance review at the University of Cape Coast on Thursday.
Dr Anyomi said the Ghana Health Service, which did not understand the high rate of teenage pregnancy over the years, conducted survey to find out those behind the canker to enable them find a lasting solution to it.
Drivers impregnated 676 girls, representing 13.3%, 996 cases were attributed to small scale farmers represent 19.3% of the population.
397 cases, representing 7.8%, were attributed to small-scale miners while 353 cases, representing 6.9%, were attributed to unemployed residents of the region.
On marital status of the pregnant teenagers sampled, 70% of the 3576 were said to be single, with 283 of them, representing 5.5% being married, while 27 persons were divorced, representing 0.5%.
The Central Region has consistently topped the chart of regions with the highest number of teenage pregnancies in the country.
A 2014 report on teenage pregnancy in Ghana compiled by the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, observed that people living along the coastal areas, particularly the Central Region and the Greater Accra Region, witnessed high rates of teenage pregnancy.
About 231 girls aged 14 and below also got pregnant during the period.
From Sarah Afful, Cape Coast
Email:affulsco@gmail.com