Children giving birth to children in South Sudan is one of the leading causes of the higher rates of maternal and infant mortality and morbidity. Early pregnancy and childbirth are the leading cause of death for girls age 15- 19 in South Sudan. A 15-year-old girl in this country has greater chance of dying in childbirth than of finishing school. Given the limited and poor health facilities and services, majority of these young girls who are married off early and get pregnant at an early age have limited access to decent health services during pregnancy. This is an emotionally difficult and transitioning time for these young girls who happen to be children themselves exposing them to diseases such as obstetric fistula. These young girls are also at higher risks of intimate partner violence and other forms of violence, some find themselves in multiple partnership networks in polygamous and inter-generational marriages, further exposing them to sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV/AIDS. In some communities, inter-generational marriages lead to practice of wife-sharing by men, their sons, brothers and relatives for reproduction and kinship maintenance.
To enlighten South Sudanese on this issue, throughout the month of October, the campaign focused on making the public understand the negative health consequences of Child Marriage and Early Child Bearing.
CREW reached out to the Director General of Ministry of Health, Dr. Alexander Dimiti, Women Reproductive Health Advocate and Former Miss World-South Sudan, Manuela Modong and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Gender Analyst, Viola Riak. All views which were later shared on various social media platforms.
In the conversation with Dr Alexander, he clearly highlighted the consequences of early child bearing and strongly condemned the negative cultural practices where a girl child is considered a “woman” the minute she gets her first period. Starting one’s menstrual cycle does not mean one is now a woman and ready for marriage and to bear children.
UNFPA Gender Analyst, Viola Riak during a radio talkshow
Manuela Modong being someone who engages with adolescent girls and boys in her field of work, she was able to share some of the devastating experiences she has had dealing with these young girls, pointing out the high level of exposure these young girls have to Sexually Transmitted Diseases. In addition, the fact that these pregnant young girls are not able to take care of themselves for example, sleeping under mosquito nets, eating balanced diet, going for antenatal visits, they risk getting pregnancy complications such as premature birth and death of the child or both mother and her baby among others.
On the last talk show, CREW hosted the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Gender Analyst Viola Riak who extensively discussed the role that UNFPA played in developing the Strategic National Action Plan to End Child Marriage in South Sudan by 2030. She also talked about the services provided by UNFPA to girls affected by child marriage and early child bearing in South Sudan; such as strengthening the midwifery in South Sudan to support young mothers, training mid-wives both national and international in 14 centres in the whole of South Sudan to ensure that no mother dies during birth, provision of family planning services among many others.
Poor and limited health facilities and services nationwide, illiteracy that hinders sharing and acceptance of information on sexual and reproductive health specially prevention of unwanted early teenage pregnancy are some of the main reasons South Sudan has the highest rates of maternal and infant mortality and morbidity as compared to other parts of the world.
Women Reproductive Health Advocate and Former Miss World-South Sudan, Manuela Modong Sharing her experiences working on reproductive health especially with adolescent girls
- Massive awareness raising programs and campaigns nation-wide on the negative health consequences of child marriage and early child bearing. Designing appropriate programs that provide families and communities with information/education and reproductive health services spearheaded by the Ministry of Health
- The government needs to prioritize the health sector in South Sudan and allocate enough funding to ensure health facilities are improved and services offered to citizens especially maternal health care.
- Sex education should be mandatory and incorporated in the education curriculum of South Sudan.
