Lucas addresses high schoolers on population issues

NORTHERN Cape Premier Sylvia Lucas yesterday celebrated World Population Day in Greenpoint, Kimberley.

World Population Day was instituted in 1989 by the Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme and is celebrated annually on June 11.

The purpose of the day is to focus attention on the urgent importance of population issues.

The theme for 2017 World Population Day is “Family Planning: Empowering People, Developing Nations”.

The provincial Department of Social Development said yesterday that investing in family planning is investing in the health and rights of women and couples worldwide.

“These investments also yield economic and other gains that can propel development forward and are thus critical to the success of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Access to safe, voluntary family planning is a human right and is central to gender equality and women’s empowerment and is key to reducing poverty,” the department said.

During her address to several young people at Greenpoint High School yesterday, Lucas said that the issue of young girls getting pregnant was a “problem that was serious cause for concern”.

“It not only affects your current circumstances, but also affects not only your future but also the future of the baby that is unplanned. You see it daily and should learn from the examples to you. The first and most important priority should be you and your future. There is no place for a baby.

“It’s not just young girls I speak to but also the boys, as a girl does not get pregnant herself. An unplanned baby is also the responsibility of the young father. If you are still in school there is no way that you can give a healthy and steadfast home and education to that child.

“It starts with mutual respect for each other. A young girl must respect and preserve herself and her body. Likewise, a boy must have respect for a girl and appreciate her,” Lucas said.