School pregnancy : The ambitious NaSEF-ONG project

For decades, cases of gender-based violence are commonplace. Added to this is the sharp rise in pregnancies in schools.. Despite the multiple approaches to solutions, the trend is not slowing. A situation that concerns the management of the Non-Governmental Organization for Nature, health, Education and Training (NaSEF-ONG). She has, indeed, designed a project to contribute to its mitigation while waiting to completely eradicate these societal facts which eat away at the daily lives of women as well as the future of many young girls.

The goal, according to the project coordinator, is to “Contribute to the reduction of the school dropout rate through the fight against Gender-Based Violence, Pregnancies among young girls in a classroom situation and the promotion of academic excellence” explains Sandrine Gansou. And the work has already begun on the ground. At the end of the second year of project implementation,

20 educational talk sessions organized for two (02) at CEG, 372 peer educators identified and empowered, 1.473 students whose 752 boys and 721 girls trained on sexual and reproductive rights and health issues, 30 students of the 6th class of the school year 2022-2023 due to 02 girls, 01 boy by CEG to whom certificates of merit have been offered are listed to be followed from 5th grade to Tle class ; the organization of a (01) School Excellence Day during which the 20 best students in BEPC due to 12 girls and 08 boys received school kits free of charge and symbolically. According to the established timeline, the project is at the stage of identifying the Top 20 of the best students in the commune at BEPC 2024 who will be distinguished on 20 December this year.

An opportunity seized by the coordination to salute the commitment of the various stakeholders. “We thank the teachers and authorities of our schools who do their best to reason with deviant students who have behaviors that will not serve to make them great men of tomorrow’s society,” insists Sandrine Gansou , very grateful.

 Observations made…

“The picture is gloomy, especially since it is not uncommon to observe in our places of education unprecedented situations which occur on a daily basis in our schools which today, instead of being in the image of a sanctuary, are the places par excellence where depravity of morals is noted with astonishing frequency, the trivialization of the sexual act, moral degeneration, irreverent behavior that is really cold-blooded>> indicates Sandrine Gansou supporting statistics

“In the first trimester, we recorded six (06) cases of pregnancies to which are added six (06) others including three (03) at CEG Tangbo-Jew, of them (02) at the CEG Zè Center and a (01) at CEG Gbéto. Of these twelve (12) cases of pregnancies recorded for this year 2023-2024, 50% of the students concerned attend the CEG Tangbo-djêvié. The perpetrators of these pregnancies (conf page 16 of the second and third quarter report of the 2nd edition of the project) are largely GDIZ workers. This fact was mentioned during the lively talk this Friday 11 October 2024 by the GUPS representative by one of the students for possible solution approaches” she explains. Added to these figures is the lack of communication between parents and students on issues relating to sexual and reproductive health.. “Analyzing very closely we see a total resignation of certain parents, an absence both physical and moral because preoccupied with subsistence problems, the latter forget one of the most important needs of their children, which is education.. Building your fortune at the cost of immense sacrifices and leaving it in the hands of offspring for whom the spirit has not been seriously forged has no future” believes Sandrine Gansou. For her “The more parents are accessible and better play their role of protector but above all of guide and awakener of conscience, the more children will, in a certain way, be able to avoid falling into certain traps whatever the difficulties they are going through,” advises the project coordinator.

….to the solutions envisaged

Based on these findings listed above, the NGO believes that a synergy of actions with other structures would be necessary. Better than a fierce struggle, strategic and above all long-term be carried out in order to avoid the worst. It must go beyond capacity building actions for learners. (awareness and awareness) within the school framework to reach the surrounding populations if we really want to correct the problem at the root” thinks the project coordinator. In this logic NaSEF aims to carry out several actions such as : develop transversally over the two (02) activities planned on behalf of each CEG, a campaign theme entitled “Making students levers for a fruitful dialogue between parents and children” with the aim of helping students resolve communication difficulties with their parents on sexuality issues; integrate into the project stakeholders forum all members of the parents’ association of each CEG; to organize awareness campaigns for parents’ associations and surrounding populations…

To achieve this, she relies more on peer educators (PE). A PE is a(e) volunteer student identified and having the abilities required to educate his peers to cultivate behaviors favorable to their personal success and that of their fellow girls and boys. They are two (02) per class, namely one girl and one boy. The EPs therefore took an oath at the launch of the crusade. This oath commits them to : be role models for their peers, work in close collaboration with the managers of their CEG and the NGO NaSEF, inform their fellow girls and boys about their rights and duties, detect and save cases of abandonment in their college, denounce and discourage acts of violence of which they and their comrades are victims, particularly sexual harassment, rape, attempted rape, forced marriage, sequestration, child trafficking etc., support their comrades who are victims of violence, encourage mutual academic assistance between students around them, inform and guide their fellow girls and boys on sexual and reproductive health to achieve the “zero pregnancies in school” objective.

As fundamental tools we will use the guide to conducting parent-child dialogue and our manual entitled “Young girl ! who is your role model ? ‘’ Which serves as a breviary for raising student awareness. The latter is a document which traces the journey of great female personalities of our dear and beautiful country Benin.. These ladies whose journey is retraced in this book certainly constitute models for young girls in our high schools and colleges who will want to put everything on their side to do like them.. The long-term objective is for Zè to be mentioned on the horizon 2026 as the last municipality regarding GBV and GMS.

Arnaud ACAKPO (Coll)