FRIDAY, March 29, 2024
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UN: 7.3 million teen births in developing world

UN: 7.3 million teen births in developing world

LONDON -- Teen pregnancies in the developing world are declining, but more than 7 million girls under the age of 18 are still giving birth each year, according to a United Nations report released Wednesday.

The UN Population Fund expressed particular alarm about the dangers facing girls 14 or younger, who account for 2 million of the 7.3 million births to women under 18 in developing countries. This group faces the gravest long-term social and health consequences from giving birth as teens.   
 
The report looked at births to women under 18 worldwide, the underlying causes of teen pregnancy and what can be done to curb the problem.   
 
``The reality is that adolescent pregnancy is most often not the result of a deliberate choice, but rather the absence of choices, and of circumstances beyond a girl's control,'' said UNFPA executive director, Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin. ``It is a consequence of little or no access to school, employment, quality information and health care.''   
 
The report said that high rates of adolescent pregnancies correspond with other social problems: ``Early pregnancies reflect powerlessness, poverty and pressures_from partners, peers, families and communities. And in too many instances, they are the result of sexual violence or coercion.''   
 
The issue is most evident in the developing world -- with 95 per cent of births to women under 18 occurring there. Ten per cent of women ages 20-24 in the Middle East reported at least one birth before age 18, while 22 per cent did in South Asia and 28 per cent did in Western and Central Africa, the report says.   
 
The report noted a positive World Health Organization report saying that some countries have seen a rapid decline over the past decade in the per centage of women reporting birth before age 15 -- a trend attributed largely to a decrease in early and arranged marriage. But its overall tone set out the case for urgent action.    
Associated Press
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