A renowned Nation Media Group journalist has won an international award following his feature story on teen pregnancies in Bungoma County.
Jesse Chenge’s remarkable win at the AJEA Dinner Gala award ceremony over the weekend, his dedication to investigative journalism, has had a profound impact, raising awareness and advocating for positive change in various areas.
Jesse’s award-winning online story, “Poverty and Parenting Teens,” delved into the urgent issue of gender reporting. The narrative shed light on a distressing situation within a specific school, where over 50 girls became pregnant due to the pressures of poverty.
In an interview, Mr. Paul Boiyo, the school administrator, revealed alarming reasons provided by the affected students. He explained, “One of them told me that they find it expensive to afford sanitary pads. They preferred to suspend the cost by getting pregnant because, biologically, pregnancy lasts nearly nine months, allowing them to save on the expense.”
The impact was further emphasized by an anonymous student who shared her struggles, stating, “Many girls suffer due to the lack of pads, so they have to find other ways from people outside because their parents cannot afford to help them.”
The collected data unveiled the hardest-hit areas within the county, with Kanduyi constituency reporting the highest number of teen pregnancies at 1,481. Other severely affected constituencies included Webuye West with 1,175 cases, Tongaren with 1,112 cases, and Bumula with 1,058 cases.
Following NTV’s exposure of the #PovertyAndPregnantTeens story, a nationwide conversation was ignited, highlighting the urgent need to address the intersecting issues of poverty and teen pregnancy. The story brought to light the harsh realities faced by young girls, forced to navigate the challenges of motherhood while living in poverty.
On February 22, 2024, Health Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha launched the Triple Threat Commitment Plan in Bungoma during the Western Kenya Women Summit, acknowledging the pressing need for comprehensive action to combat poverty-driven teen pregnancies.
This online story serves as a call to action, urging communities, policymakers, and organizations to work together in finding sustainable solutions to break the cycle of poverty and empower young girls to lead healthier and more prosperous lives.