School based reproductive health education programmes and teenage pregnancy in Mtwara region, Tanzania

Abstract

Teenage pregnancy is one of the complex health and development problems facing the world. In Tanzania, teenage pregnancy has been identified as one of the reasons for girls dropping out from school. The purpose of this study was to determine the contribution of school based reproductive health education programme on teenage pregnancy. The study adopted a cross-sectional exploratory design and was conducted in Mtwara District and Mtwara Municipality, Tanzania. Simple random sampling was used to select the participating schools from the Prevention and Awareness in schools of HIV and AIDs (PASHA) intervention schools and non-intervention schools. The respondents were randomly selected to participate in the study from four schools. Data were collected using a questionnaire, focus group discussions and key informant interviews. A total of 156 people participated in the study. Results from the study show that teenage pregnancy is a major problem in Mtwara. Attributing factors included poverty, culture, desire for money, lack of education on reproductive health issues, peer pressure and poor parental support. The study found that school based reproductive health education was effective in terms of knowledge creation. Results from the reproductive health test administered between intervention and non-intervention schools were significant (P ≤ 0.001). The study also found a significant difference at (P ≤ 0.001) between rural and urban non-intervention schools. The study therefore concludes that school based reproductive health education programmes are effective in knowledge dissemination among adolescent girls and recommends that comprehensive School based Reproductive Health Education programme (SBRHEP) be expanded in more schools.