Early Marriage And Motherhood In Sub-Saharan Africa - Brief Article

WIN News, Wntr, 2000

FROM 'AFRICAN ENVIRONMENT - WOMAN AND AFRICAN: CUTTING BOTH WAYS'

BY: THERESE LOCOH. ENDA-EDITIONS, P.O. Box 3370, Dakar, SENEGAL.

"Early motherhood has been the subject of a growing number of studies, research projects and intervention programmes in Africa. African women in general marry at a much earlier age than their non-African counterparts, leading to early pregnancies. Thanks to the increased awareness generated by studies on this issue, there is a large consensus among African decision-making bodies on the necessity of avoiding very early pregnancies.

But this consensus has only been reached among government officials and specialised groups - it has yet to affect the many families, particularly in rural areas, who still count on young marriage and motherhood.

Surveys carried out in some Sahelian countries offer alarming examples. In Niger, for example, according to the 1992 health and demographic survey (HDS), 47% of women aged between 20 and 24 were married before the age of 15 and 87% before the age of 18. 53% had also had a child before the age of 18.

Early pregnancy, when it happens within marriage, is rarely seen as a 'problem.' On the contrary, it is viewed as a blessing for the young married woman, no matter what her age, because it is proof of her fertility. Pregnancy out of wedlock, on the other hand, is perceived differently depending on the social environment. In many cases the pregnancy is acknowledged by the father and marriage follows.

In most societies sterility is viewed with contempt and shame, therefore, it is desirable for a woman to prove her fertility before the marriage is clinched. Adolescent pregnancy, whether within marriage or not, is therefore accepted by many societies. Yet in Islamic societies the situation is viewed in an entirely different light. Sex before marriage is widely condemned and families are much in favour of very early marriages to avoid pregnancies outside of wedlock...

The World Health Organization estimates that the risk of death following pregnancy is twice as great for women between 15 and 19 years than for those between the ages of 20 and 24. The maternal mortality rate can be up to five times higher for girls aged between 10 and 14 than for women of about twenty years of age.

Pregnant adolescents face far more health problems than older women, particularly single girls who often receive less prenatal care. Adolescents are far more susceptible to suffering from anaemia than adults, which greatly increases the risk and complications linked to pregnancy. They are equally more at risk of malnutrition, high blood pressure linked to pregnancy and eclampsia (a condition which can prove fatal) than women who are over 20.

A too narrow pelvis (because the bones are not fully developed) can cause prolonged or obstructed labour which could mean cerebral damage for the infant and even lead to the mother's death...Health studies clearly indicate the dangers of pregnancy for adolescents not yet fully developed, as well as the risks linked to illegal abortion which is increasingly sought by young girls.

Women's welfare organisations are quick to point out how teenage pregnancy can hinder a young girl's training and professional career. Family planning programmes have also intervened and avoidance of teenage pregnancy is now a priority on their agenda...For the past fifteen years, important efforts have been made to improve the level of knowledge about adolescent fertility and its effects.

One of the first research studies, carried out on the initiative of Pathfinder Fund, presented several studies per country and analysed the available results of worldwide fertility studies. In response to a request made by several West and Central African research institutes, the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) launched a comparative analysis project on adolescent fertility with nine countries...

From 1986 on the HDS (Health and Demographic Surveys) issued renewed national statistics which not only measured fertility according to age, but also provided data on childbirth conditions and children's health...A research panel from the US National Academy of Sciences published studies on the population dynamics of sub-Saharan Africa which included an important volume of reports dealing with adolescent fertility...

It is impossible to discuss the issue of adolescent fertility without touching on health concerns...It is particularly important that targeted health actions be set up to take account of the problems of young rural women who may face marriage and motherhood at a very early age...Though adolescent fertility problems have become a major theme in family planning circles, in many countries neither sex-education nor access to information on contraception have really been developed..."