Educating teenage girls in school has been a challenging experience due to the changes in our socio-cultural backgrounds. In Cameroon, it is even more challenging to educate teenage mothers or pregnant girls. I have worked with teenagers for more than 25 years, and the experience is increasingly getting tougher.

Girls now have divided minds and think they can juggle school life and social life, and before they know it, they are struggling to be students and mothers at the same time. It is becoming a high risk to educate girls due to the increasing difficulty faced by parents and sponsors of girls who do not complete high school due to teenage pregnancy. The prevalence is increasing, and the number of teenage girls writing the General Certificate Examination with pregnancy has also increased since 2016 and the COVID-19 closure of schools in 2020.

Girls were more ashamed to be seen pregnant and going to school, but now, it is not a big deal for some teenage girls. I have worked with many teenage girls between the ages of 15 and 20 who have either dropped out of school due to pregnancy, going to school while pregnant or writing the GCE while pregnant or teen mothers. The problem with teenage pregnancy and teenage motherhood, especially in the northwest and southwest regions, has become more rampant due to the socio-political crisis since 2016.

I have seen more teenage girls pregnant or mothers than in the past. Two years ago, I worked with over 40 pregnant women in Okoyong villa.