Give kids condoms

THE Department of Basic Education in the Western Cape has a proposal to issue free condoms at primary schools. The issue of teenage pregnancies can no longer be ignored, hence drastic action has to be instituted with the intention of reducing the number of children getting pregnant.

The Western Cape has reported that 78 primary school girls fell pregnant in 2014, with five of those in Grade 5. These statistics show that children are aware of sex and are engaging in unprotected sex. Are parents abdicating their responsibility to sensitise their children about their sexuality? Is it a case of parents relying on teachers to disseminate this vital information?

Some parents are conservative, resulting in them shying away from the critical topic of sexuality. The channels of communication between parent and child must be open at all times. Parents need to have the necessary skills in interacting and answering the relevant questions about the birds and the bees.

Dismissing or ignoring questions from children, irrespective of how uncomfortable it may seem, may lead them to getting the wrong information from their friends who are neither informed nor qualified to answer any questions on sexuality. Misinformation given to a young mind is detrimental, resulting in their decision-making processes being compromised.

Parents are obviously not in agreement with these proposals. Some are saying that if a child sees condoms in school they will want to experiment and probably be pressured into having sex, while others are enunciating a biblical perspective, saying that people need to be married before engaging in sex – and giving children condoms contradicts this ideology. The Department of Health has realised that teenage pregnancy in primary schools is a problem. It is therefore incumbent on it to make condoms available to all those who need them so that they can protect themselves.