Chief Executive Officer of the National Parenting Support Commission (NPSC), Kaysia Kerr, provided the statistics during the inaugural Women’s Centre of Jamaica Foundation’s (WCJF) Empowered Futures Parenting Symposium held on Friday (May 9), at the Jamaica Conference Centre in downtown Kingston.
She said that some 152 pregnancies were recorded over the period.
Data from the Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth and Information’s seven regions indicate that in Region 1 (Kingston and St. Andrew) – 63 of 68 adolescent mothers were reintegrated; Region 2 (St. Thomas, Portland and St. Mary) – 22 of 22 were reintegrated; Region 3 (St. Ann and Trelawny) – 5 of 5 were reintegrated; Region 4 (St. James, Hanover and Westmoreland) – 9 of 9 were reintegrated; Region 5 (Manchester and St. Elizabeth) – 8 of 23 were reintegrated; Region 6 (St. Catherine) – 10 of 10 were reintegrated; and Region 7 (Clarendon) – 15 of 15 were reintegrated.
Ms. Kerr, who represented Portfolio Minister, Senator Dr. the Hon. Dana Morris Dixon, indicated that the girls either returned to the institutions they attended before pregnancy or were enrolled in a new school.
She noted that although many of these girls had originally earned a place in school, the response of “no space available” has been used by some institutions to exclude them from post-pregnancy reintegration.
The Education Regulations (1980) provides the basis for Ministerial discretion to facilitate the re-entry of girls to educational institutions.
The Ministry’s National Policy on the Reintegration of School-age Mothers establishes a framework for inter-agency collaboration to address the wider issues that limit their reintegration into the formal school system.
Ms. Kerr underscored that reintegration in today’s world means more than just getting back into the classroom.
“It must include embracing all the training and skills development opportunities available to enable you to function effectively as parents and as individuals,” she told the adolescent mothers in attendance.
She reminded them that education is the gateway to empowerment and they must embrace the opportunities.
“It is the key that unlocks not only opportunity, but also dignity. Whether in the classroom, the home, or the community, education enables transformation. In addition, when a mother is educated and empowered, she changes not only her life, but the lives of her children, her household and ultimately, her community,” she pointed out.
Ms. Kerr told the adolescent mothers that they are a powerful reminder of the resilience, hope and potential that exist within Jamaica’s youth.
“You are part of a sisterhood of second chances and that is a beautiful, powerful thing,” she said, commending the symposium’s focus on not just their past, but more importantly, their future.