By Felix Wanderi
Parents have been blamed for allowing their teenage children to engage in anti-social behaviour like consumption of drugs alcohol and indulging in early sex.
The increase of teen pregnancies has led to an upsurge of the problem in Kiambu County primary schools although statistics show that Machakos has the leading number of teenage mothers in the country.
Following the outcry, some parents have now devised new ways of indulging their children productively so as to monitor them and not leave them at home unsupervised.
Annita Wanjiku a class six pupil at Tinganga Model Primary School within Kiambu Sub County accompanies her mother to her tailoring shop where she has learnt how to knit and sew different fabrics hence realizing talent in the design.
“I accompanied my mother to her tailoring shop to see and learn what she does and in the process started practicing on my own without supervision,” said wanjiku.
The 12 year old old, like many other school going children, yearns to go back to school because many of them have nothing much to do apart from too much play.
She says while at the tailoring shop she has learnt to make facemasks, making clothes, hand bags, purses, crochets, knitting ponchos, sweaters and other woolen garments.
“I display them outside my mums tailoring shop and I have been able to gain customers of my products whose proceeds I’m saving to but essentials items when schools reopen,” said Wanjiku.
She has however not abandoned her books as she creates time to do school work and revise before helping do home chores.
She encourages her peers not to get lured into doing bad things while at home as it will ruin their lives and also encourages them to make time for reading.
Her mother mother Esther Macharia, a single parent says she has two other children, one in first year in University and the other who has not join school.
She goes through the challenge of putting food on the table daily and also monitor her children at all times.
“I have to go to work so that I can feed my family during these covid-19 pandemic. These are trying times because my work is too demanding and I have monitor my children all the time,” she said.
Macharia said she has learnt that many children are too much exposed and are subjected to anti-social behaviour by their parents or guardians.
“I have noticed many children have access to smart phones even where I live because there is an open Wi-fi connection where they access all sorts of stuff through the internet,” she said.
Beth Wangari, a customer whose bag was made by Wanjiku said monitoring children is paramount for parentsto protect them from exploitation or indulging in un healthy activities.
Another parent Peter Mbugua concurred that parents should take up their roles seriously and not wait for teachers to shape the lives of their children.
Kiambu County Assembly Women Caucus chairperson Nduta wa Muongi said since the outbreak of Covid-19 in Kenya, there has been an increase in the number of underage mothers in the county
She said they suffer stigmatisation, a situation that informed their decision to reach out to and help them.
“We have had interventions of speaking and advising the young girls across the county and through partnership with Safaricom, we are able to help those who are already pregnant,” Nduta said.
Kiambu Deputy Governor Joyce Ngugi said the rising numbers of young mothers forced women leaders to go round hospitals to locate them.
We decided to get their data so that they can be counselled to go back to school as we engage them in other programmes before schools open,” she said.
