INTRODUCING FAMILY PLANNING METHODS TO RURAL TEENAGE GIRLS


The father of my baby dumped me after the baby came and since then I have been suffering. My parents are too poor to help so I have to make love to different men to help feed my baby. Please Ma, the teaching you gave on HIV/AIDS is very touchy and fearful so how can I make love with these men without contracting it and getting pregnant again because I cant watch my daughter go hungry as the men are not willing to help without asking for sex. 
This was my interaction with a sixteen years old girl Beauty (a very beautiful girl just as her name sounds), a mother of an eleven months old baby girl during one of my out reaches. She asked me this question and it almost took my peace. Immediately, I realized the need to introduce sex education and family planning methods to our rural teenage girls.

Prior to now, the thought of sensitizing family planning methods to rural teenage girls has been vehemently opposed to as it has been seen as empowering them into becoming promiscuous.
The alarming rate of teenage pregnancies in our rural areas has become a major concern to many non governmental organizations like us that work with the rural people. Moreover, some schools of thought who believe that exposing rural teenage girls to family planning methods is to make them get promiscuous advocate for total sexual abstinence.

Therefore, how can one control teenager's emotional/sexual feelings? At what age should we start advocating for sexual abstinence amongst our rural teenage girls? What is the difference between 'skin to skin intercourse' and other forms of family planning methods? How can a teenager understand the after effect of contraceptives?

At the rural communities, condoms are seen as high commodities for the rich so what can we do in helping our rural teenage girls from getting pregnant. Are you in support of introducing family planning methods to rural teenage girls or not?
Your comments and suggestions are highly recommended as they will help us to decide our next action on this.

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