Sixty-three (63) girls in Bulawayo dropped out of school after being impregnated, while about 40 pupils were also impregnated by gold panners in Ntabazinduza within a year.
This was revealed by Bulawayo provincial education director Olicah Kaira. She was speaking during a meeting hosted by the Matabeleland Council for the Welfare of the Child last week.
Kaira told the gathering that since the commencement of the coronavirus-induced national lockdown in March 2020, at least 63 girls dropped out of school in the city after falling pregnant while one 12-year-old pupil committed suicide during the term. She said:
As a ministry, in Bulawayo, we received three cases reported of unintended pregnancies this term alone and we think there could be more unreported cases. Since the onset of the lockdown, the total number of cases now stands at 63.
We also received a report of a 12-year-old who committed suicide, investigations conducted by the ministry revealed that the situation at home where the child lived could have influenced the suicide.
In 2020 the Government amended the Education Act to allow pregnant girls back in class.
However, reports indicate that few girls were returning to school, as they have to assume motherly roles.