Teenage Mothers Initiative (TEEMI) was founded in 2015 to support adolescent girls who had dropped out of school as a result of early and unplanned pregnancies. It is an association of women, women’s groups and organizations working together to ensure that teenage mothers are able to thrive and live a life of dignity and purpose
The number of teenage mothers in Uganda is increasing and this is being fueled by the COVID-19 pandemic. Teenage mothers face a myriad of challenges and this is has been worse with the COVID-19 that has seen many teenage girls concede. While many of them would like to continue with education and achieve their dreams, there are many obstacles that cause them to become pregnant and drop out of school. Forced and early marriages, lack of information, misinformation, insufficient information and myths are some of the reasons behind teenage pregnancy crisis. In addition, a girl is rarely provided with basic needs to support her go to school in comfort. She lacks transport money, meals, sanitary pads and will sometimes lack school fees. All these are such challenges for a young girl who is struggling to get an education. In addition, when young girls concede, are expected to obey their
elders without questioning any instructions.
Over the years, they have been made to believe that men are superior and they should not question their intentions. Teenage mothers are stigmatized when they try to access information and services from the health facilities. Health providers treat them as minors with no right to reproductive health services. Schools are hesitant to welcome them back even after giving birthor even during early pregnancy. The effect of this is that they continue to engage in unsafe sex practices. All these factors work against teenage mothers which calls for action.
TEEMI is seeing more teenage mothers access unsafe abortion services with many of them ending up with fatal or lifelong complications. As a result more teenage mothers end up getting HIV infections. If nothing is done, the number of teenage mothers will continue to increase making it difficult to end the teenage pregnancies.
With many years of working with teenage mothers, our staff are well versed with challenges they face. They bring this experience to bear in our programs. Having gone through the same educational system, had friends, sisters and cousins who had unplanned pregnancies, we understand the pain and how best to address this challenge. Adolescent mothers give their best in education as we have experienced in the last years, TEEMI offers them this opportunity.
We are working in communities where teenage mothers are not valued and are seen as cursed mothers. Their whole life is prepared to be good wives and ensuring they serve their husbands well. We are advocating for a new way of thinking and giving teenage mothers a voice to assert their rights and achieve their highest level of education. We are relentless in pointing out cultural
and traditional practices that are retrogressive and harmful to teenage mothers. We push for equal opportunities for both boys and girls and especially adolescent mothers.
Many teenage mothers have been supported and given an opportunity to go back to formal and informal school and institutions. Many of them have completed and started income generating activities in their communities. Many teenage mothers are in vocational training and others in high schools. We work to ensure that in the shortest time possible, the adolescent mothers have
turned around their lives.
Earned community respect: These adolescent mothers were despised and not respected in their communities. Today, they have earned back their respect. They are back to school are performing well and have ambitions of becoming doctors, nurses, engineers and teachers and more. Know their rights: The adolescent mothers know their rights. They have a voice. They ask questions and do what is right for them. They have access to all services in the communities that will ensure they are not abused.
They have skills: They have skills that enables them to earn an income to support their babies and family. TEEMI has supported them with training in entrepreneurship. With these skills, they have developed proposals for animal keeping, soap making, dressmaking, salon business, poultry farming and TEEMI has supported their business ideas.
Communities sensitized on adolescent girls’ rights: We have sensitized parents and community members on the rights of adolescent girls — this is changing long-held stigmas around young mothers, their value and their potential.