Rights activists, politicians decry increasing number of teenage mothers in Wakiso

Wakiso Woman MP, Ms Betty Ethel Naluyima and Ms Lillian Babirye of Babirye Care foundation giving out scholastic materials to teenage mother in Kigungu Landing site. Photo/ Eve Muganga

A section of human rights activists in Wakiso District in central Uganda have decried the increasing number of teenage mothers in the district, especially Entebbe Municipality.

Ms Betty Naluyima, the district Woman MP said they can’t just sit back when so many young mothers are being left behind.

“According to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) report of 2021, over 10,000 teenage mothers were recorded in Wakiso meaning we got a trophy for teenage mothers in the district. Therefore, we have come up to partner with Young Women Coalition and Babirye Care Foundation to see that these girls can get a better future as we make them return to school..’’said Ms Naluyima during the launch of the Act for Teen Mothers Project at Kigungu Play ground in Entebbe Municipality.

Ms Lillian Babirye, the executive director Young Women Coalition and Babirye Care Foundation said,” In areas of Entebbe we have registered 1,000, and our main target is island, in Kigungu we have registered 200 teen mothers and we are going to ask what each one does such that those who want to go back to school are given that opportunity or empowered with life skills to survive.”

Other landing sites to be visited include Misoli, Bussi and Buwaya, among others.

She said the Act for teen mothers is a project meant to empower young girls with survival skills to be able to support themselves.

“What worries me most, is that these children don’t have justice and in this project we have launched, before we empower these teen mothers, we want to start up a justice mechanism to see that they get justice so that the perpetrators face courts of law,” she added.