Many Nigerian families today, discussing sexual and
reproductive health issues with children is taboo. Similarly, many mothers
find it absurd to talk about sex with their daughters. Experts have blamed the increasing rate of unprotected sexual activity, teenage pregnancy, unsafe
abortions, STDs, HIV and AIDS on the absence of sexual and reproductive health
education.
According to the Guttmacher Institute fact sheet of
December 2017, formal sexual health education is an instruction that takes place
in a structured setting, such as a school, youth centre, church or other
community-based location.
The report further said that this type of
instruction is a central source of information for adolescents among teenagers.
Between 2011 and 2013, more than 80 per cent of adolescents
in the US aged from 15 to 19 had received formal instruction about STDs, HIV
and AIDS or how to say no to sex, the Guttmacher Institute report said. The story is different in Nigeria where subjects like sexual and reproductive
health are not openly discussed between teenagers and parents or guardians.
Research shows that teaching about female hormonal
physiology, like the menstrual cycle, is essential to the development of the
girl child.
Fatima James, a Junior Secondary School student in
Egbe, Alimosho, Lagos, started menstruation at the age of 12 without being
educated on sexual and reproductive health. Her mother, a petty trader, felt it
is unnecessary to disclose such information at an early age.
On the other hand,
Fatima did not feel comfortable to tell her mother when she commenced
menstruation. She told our reporters, how she used a piece of clothes instead
of the sanitary pad during menstruation until she attended her first session at
Adolescent 360 (A360) Project, 9ja Girls.
“I did not tell my Mummy because I was scared of the
first time I noticed a blood stain on my pants,” she explained.
However, all this have become history as Fatima is
getting more informed about her sexuality at the 9ja Girls Youth Friendly
Services, Alimosho Centre, where she is also undergoing skill acquisition.
“Today, I know better, all this happened before I
started attending the programmes of 9ja Girls Youth Friendly Services, Alimosho
Centre. They teach us many things here, even how to make beads, footwears, handmade
bags and others,” Fatima added.
A360
Project, 9ja Girls
The Society for Family Health (SFH) conducts
training for adolescent girls in eight states of the country. SFH targets girls
aged 15 to 19 for sexual education and skill acquisition through one of its
projects, A360.
The A360 Project, which started in January 2016,
trains adolescent girls and their mothers to enhance sexual and reproductive
health, as well as strengthen the relationship between mother and child,
explained Fatima Mohammed, Project Director, A360 Nigeria during one of the
training in Lagos.
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