Schools close and student pregnancies rise in lockdown Kenya

Schools close and student pregnancies rise in lockdown Kenya

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Jackline Bosibori wept when she found out she was pregnant. The 17-year-old's mother, who is raising six kids alone, collapsed in their one-room home. They had been repeatedly threatened with eviction and couldn't afford another mouth to feed.

"If I was in school, this could have not happened," said Bosibori, who wants to become a lawyer.

. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi
Bosibori stands with her mother Ann Kemunto outside their home in Lindi village.

With schools closed due to the coronavirus pandemic and her mother out selling vegetables on the roadside, Bosibori got involved with a man in his twenties. When she told him she was pregnant, he stopped answering her calls.

. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi
"I have to carry my clothes here to do my washing, it is tiring but there is nothing I can do," said Bosibori.

During her pregnancy, she helped with chores like washing laundry in puddles in Kibera shanty town - a poor suburb of the Kenyan capital Nairobi where people live in tin-roofed homes crammed together and criss-crossed by railway lines.

. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi
Bosibori shops for second hand baby clothes. "I can't believe I am actually buying this for a baby inside me," she said.

In a nearby marketplace, she bought second hand clothes for the baby.

Global lockdowns could lead to rising rates of adolescent pregnancy, non-governmental organisations working on reproductive health have warned.

. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi
Bosibori stands inside her shanty.

In Kenya, some preliminary data suggests that is happening.

In the far northern town of Lodwar, teenage pregnancies among clients of the International Rescue Committee aid group nearly tripled to 625 in June-August this year, compared with 226 in the same period a year earlier, IRC data show.

. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi
Bosibori feeds a hen.

In the nearby refugee camp of Kakuma, adolescent pregnancies among clients jumped to 51 in the March-August 2020 period, compared with 15 in the same period in 2019.

. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi
Bosibori lies on a hospital bed as a midwife listens to her unborn baby's heartbeat. "I am certain that I will give birth safely and my baby will be healthy," she said.

At the clinic that Bosibori attended for antenatal visits – often with her classmate, who also became pregnant around the same time as her – the number of expectant girls has been climbing.

"Since COVID-19 started, we are having more," said nurse Joy Ambiyo.

And more pregnant girls may be skipping doctors' visits altogether.

. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi
Bosibori's younger sisters Maurine Bochaderi, 7, Faith Nyakerario, 5, and Angela Moraa, 12, spend time with Bosibori's newborn daughter.

"We know that young girls who get pregnant do not access healthcare services like adult females because of the judgment," said Ademola Olajide, the United Nations Population Fund representative in Kenya.

That makes them more vulnerable to health complications and unsafe abortions, he added.

Globally, pregnancy and childbirth are the leading causes of death for girls aged between 15 and 19, according to the World Health Organization.

. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi
A nurse shows Bosibori how to breastfeed her one-day-old daughter at Kenyatta National Hospital. "I don't know what I feel right now, I am having mixed feelings," Bosibori said.

Bosibori had some complications of her own. Her doctors recommended a caesarean section, but she and her mother Ann were apprehensive and sought approval from a traditional healer.

With the healer's blessing, Bosibori had the procedure and delivered a healthy 3.3 kg baby girl.

. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi
Bosibori holds her newborn daughter.

"I am happy the baby is here, the anxiety is now over," said Bosibori as she held her new-born child on the family's only bed, flanked by dusty old speakers that act as bedside tables.

. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi
Bosibori is surrounded with her sisters as she holds her newborn daughter.

Until January, when Kenya's schools are set to fully reopen, Bosibori will be caring for the baby full time, squeezing in revision when she can.

. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi
Bosibori's mother (left) and her friend spend time with her newborn granddaughter.

After that, Ann, who had Bosibori when she was 18, said she'll find a way to care for her grandchild.

"The girl has to go back to school."

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Slideshow

A commuter train rides through shanty structures within the Kibera slums.
. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi

A commuter train rides through shanty structures within the Kibera slums.

Bosibori walks to a vegetable garden with her neighbour Arafah.
. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi

Bosibori walks to a vegetable garden with her neighbour Arafah.

Bosibori stands outside her shanty.
. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi

Bosibori stands outside her shanty.

Bosibori holds a hen.
. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi

Bosibori holds a hen.

Bosibori's younger sister Faith Nyakerario, 5, carries a bucket.
. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi

Bosibori's younger sister Faith Nyakerario, 5, carries a bucket.

Bosibori's younger sisters Faith Nyakerario, 5, and Maurine Bochaderi, 7, study inside their home.
. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi

Bosibori's younger sisters Faith Nyakerario, 5, and Maurine Bochaderi, 7, study inside their home.

Bosibori holds a doll.
. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi

Bosibori holds a doll.

Bosibori lies on a couch at her home.
. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi

Bosibori lies on a couch at her home.

Bosibori's shadow is cast onto a wall inside her shanty.
. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi

Bosibori's shadow is cast onto a wall inside her shanty.

Bosibori attends an ultrasound appointment at Tabitha Medical Clinic. "I don't want to get married at this stage, I am still very young and have dreams to fulfil," said Bosibori.
. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi

Bosibori attends an ultrasound appointment at Tabitha Medical Clinic. "I don't want to get married at this stage, I am still very young and have dreams to fulfil," said Bosibori.

Bosibori looks at pictures from her ultrasound appointment. "I have no one to talk to. My parents have been very harsh towards me," Bosibori said.
. Nairobi, Kenya. Monicah Mwangi

Bosibori looks at pictures from her ultrasound appointment. "I have no one to talk to. My parents have been very harsh towards me," Bosibori said.

Bosibori rides a bus to Kenyatta National Hospital with her mother.
. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi

Bosibori rides a bus to Kenyatta National Hospital with her mother.

Bosibori walks through the corridors of Kenyatta National Hospital after giving birth.
. Nairobi, Kenya. Reuters/Monicah Mwangi

Bosibori walks through the corridors of Kenyatta National Hospital after giving birth.