KUCHING: From January to June this year, 64.4 per cent or 605 of the 940 teenage pregnancy cases reported in Sarawak involved young individuals, aged 18 to 19 years.
Out of the total, 96 per cent, or 902 cases, involved those who were no longer in school when the pregnancy was reported.
Minister of Women, Childhood, and Community Wellbeing Development, Datuk Seri Fatimah Abdullah, said this is based on data from the Sarawak State Health Department (JKNS).
“Of the total, 35.7 per cent or 335 cases involved teenagers under 18 years old.
“Additionally, 31.3 per cent involved those aged 16 to 17 years, and 4.4 per cent were under 16 years old,” she said
She said this during a press conference after chairing the One-Stop Teenage Pregnancy Committee (OSTPC) meeting today (July12).
Furthermore, she noted that 62.55 per cent or 588 cases involved unmarried individuals at the time of pregnancy.
“By administrative division, Kapit recorded the highest percentage of teenage pregnancies at 12.64 per cent, followed by Sri Aman (8.25 per cent), Bintulu (8.16 per cent), Sibu (7.52 per cent), and Sarikei (7.20 per cent).
“Hence, teenage pregnancy remains one of the 14 social issues prioritised by our ministry, to be tackled together with relevant agencies due to its complexity,” she added.
“Sarawak aims to reduce the teenage pregnancy rate this year by 10 per cent, targetting not more than 1,824 cases compared to the 2,026 cases recorded in 2023.
“Between January and June, 345 intervention referrals were issued to OSTPC members concerning welfare issues, legal matters, identification documents, schooling, protection, and health support for teenage mothers and their babies across the state.
“Of these, 57.1 per cent or 197 cases have been fully resolved, 6.7 per cent (23 cases) remain unresolved, and 36.2 per cent (125 cases) are still in process,” she added.
She said since 2016, 114 social intervention programmes related to the OSTPC’s functions and objectives have been implemented statewide.
“The Awareness and Advocacy on Sexual Education Program (KAPS) has had a positive impact, reducing school-going teenage pregnancy cases by 60.6 per cent, from 160 cases in 2015 to 63 cases in 2023,”she added.
