Nakuru County Government has committed to expediting measures to address the triple adolescence challenges of HIV infection, early pregnancies and gender-based violence.
The county Chief Officer for Public Health Alice Abuki, speaking during a sensitization seminar held at Njoro sub-county, said the county admiration was perturbed by the soaring numbers of the three vices among the local youth.
Abuki said the trend was unacceptable and everything possible would be done to end the triple threat, citing that in 2022, the county recorded new 297 HIV infections among teenagers aged between 10-19, representing 19.8 percent of the total such infections in the county.
At the same time, 8426 adolescent girls aged 10-19 became pregnant in the same year, while sexual and gender-based violence cases among the age bracket of 10-17 years, rose from 439 in 2016 to 1101 in 2022.
However, reacting to the shocking figures, a youth leader from the county John Kanyi blamed parents, teachers, healthcare workers, religious and traditional leaders, who are often wary of implementing measures aimed at rescuing adolescents, ostensibly due to social taboos and discriminatory gender norms.
By Veronica Bosibori
