Motherhood in Childhood Facing the Challenge of Adolescent Pregnancy

1. Motherhood in ChildhoodFacing the Challenge of Adolescent Pregnancy Theme for the State of World Population Report 2013 30 October 2013 India

2. Up Ahead • UNFPA, Rights and Adolescent Pregnancy • Global Statistics • The Challenges Worldwide • The Underlying Causes • Pressures from Many Directions & Levels • Ecological Model • India: Factsheet • Foundations for Progress • Eight Ways to Get There • The Benefits • Research Needs • Voices

3. “From a human rights perspective, a girl who becomes pregnant- regardless of the circumstances or reasons - is one whose rights are undermined.” —Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin Executive Director, United Nations Population Fund Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations.

4. UNFPA, Rights and Adolescent Pregnancy UNFPA is guided by the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), respecting protecting and fulfilling adolescents human rights including their right to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive health.

5. Countries with 20% or more of women ages 20-24 reporting a birth before age 18

6. Per cent of adolescent girls in marriages and adolescent birth rates

7. Lifetime cost of adolescent pregnancy of the current cohort of girls 15 to 19 years old, as share of annual GDP

8. Pregnancy Desires and Contraceptive Use The proportion of married adolescents who are or wish to become pregnant varies widely by region Sub-Saharan Africa South Central & Southeast Asia Latin America & Caribbean Want to avoid pregnancy, using no method Want to avoid pregnancy, using a traditional method Want to avoid pregnancy, using a modern method Want pregnancy or are intentionally pregnant

9. The Challenges Worldwide • 20,000 girls giving birth every day • Missed educational and other opportunities • 70,000 adolescent deaths annually from complications from pregnancy, childbirth • 3.2 million unsafe abortions among adolescents each year • Perpetuation of poverty and exclusion • Basic human rights denied • Girls’ potential unfulfilled

10. The Underlying Causes • Child Marriage • Gender inequality • Obstacles to human rights • Poverty • Sexual violence and coercion • National policies restricting access to contraception, age- appropriate sexuality education • Lack of access to education and reproductive health services • Underinvestment in adolescent girls’ human capital

11. Pressures from Many Directions & Levels An ‘ecological’ approach to adolescent pregnancy is one that takes account the full range of complex drivers (individual, family, school/peers, community, national) of adolescent pregnancy and the interplay of these forces For more details on the ‘ecological’ approach please refer to Page 33, State of World Population Report 2013

12. Ecological Model

13. India: Factsheet

14. India: Percentage of women age 20-24 married before age 18 Source: DLHS- 3

15. Median age at first marriage and first birth among women aged 25-29 by educational attainment Source: NFHS -3 Refer to notes below

16. India: Factsheet (Cont.) Refer to notes below

17. Foundations for Progress • Empower Girls: Building girls’ agency, enabling them to make decisions • Rectify gender inequality: Put girls and boys on equal footing • Respect human rights for all: Upholding rights can eliminate conditions that contribute to adolescent pregnancy • Reduce poverty: In developing and developed countries, poverty drives adolescent pregnancy

18. The Way Ahead... “What is needed is a new way of thinking about the challenge of adolescent pregnancy. Instead of viewing the girl as the problem and changing her behaviour as the solution, governments, communities, families and schools should see poverty, gender inequality, discrimination, lack of access to services, and negative views about girls and women as the real challenges, and the pursuit of social justice, equitable development and the empowerment of girls as the true pathway to fewer adolescent pregnancies.” —Dr. BabatundeOsotimehin Executive Director, United Nations Population Fund Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations. Refer to notes below

19. Eight Ways to Get There • Girls 10 to 14: Preventive interventions for young adolescents • Child marriage: Stop marriage under 18, prevent sexual violence and coercion • Multilevel approaches: Build girls’ assets across the board; keep girls on healthy, safe life trajectories • Human rights: Protect rights to health, education, security and freedom from poverty • Education: Get girls in school and enable them to stay enrolled longer • Engage men and boys: Help them be part of the solution • Sexuality education and access to services: Expand age-appropriate information, provide health services used by adolescents • Equitable development: Build a post-MDG framework based on human rights, equality, sustainability

20. ... And The Benefits • Better Maternal and Child Health: Later pregnancies reduce health risks to girls and to their children • More Girls Completing their Education: This reduces the likelihood of child marriage and delays child bearing leading eventually to healthier birth outcomes. Also builds skills, raises girls’ status • Equal Rights and Opportunity: Preventing pregnancy helps ensure girls enjoy all basic human rights • Increased Economic Productivity and Employment: Investments that empower girls improve income-earning prospects • Adolescent Girls’ Potential Fully Realized: Prospects are brighter for a girl who is healthy, educated and able to enjoy rights

21. Research Needs • Data on needs and experiences of young adolescents 10-14 years • Data about pregnancies or births outside of marriage • Data and insights about the men and boys who father the children of adolescent girls • More in-depth data and contextual information on patterns, trends, and the circumstances of pregnancy among girls under 18 • Need for periodic survey on extent and types of violence experienced by adolescents

22. Voices from across the world

23. “I knew about condoms, but could not ask my husband to use one. I was only 16 when I got married and felt he would get angry, as I was less educated than him.” Pinki, 19, India

24. “I am always imagining what my life would be like if I had met someone before I was pregnant, someone who taught me to be assertive, someone who talked to me about relationships, the advantages and disadvantages of engaging in sex so young. Maybe I would not be in this situation” Swinton, 20, pregnant at 15, Zimbabwe

25. “I was given to my husband when I was little and I don’t even remember when I was given because I was so little. It’s my husband who brought me up” Kanas, 18, Ethiopia

26. “Pregnancy is not like going to a party and then it is over. Before you even think about having sexual relationships, you should always think about the consequences.” Valeria, 15, Nicaragua

27. “I was going out with my boyfriend for a year and he used to give me money and clothes. I got pregnant when I was 13… He promised he would take care of me. After that, he left. ” Ilda, 15, Mozambique

28. “As I look back... I remember many goals I wanted for myself but could not achieve” Jessica, 39, pregnant at 18, USA

29. “I was 16 and never missed a day of school. Then one day I was told that I had to leave it all, as my parents bartered me for a girl my elder brother was to marry. I pleaded with my mother, but my father had made up his mind ” Komal, 18, India

30. “When we devote attention • and resources to the education, health and well being of adolescent girls, they will become an even greater force for positive change in society that will have an impact for generations to come.” • United Nations Secretary- • General Ban Ki-moon Refer to notes below

31. Delivering a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe and every young person’s potential is fulfilled http://india.unfpa.org/