This archive report was first published on 25 September 2019.
According to a report released by the Ministry of Health on Wednesday, September 25, 2019, 22 adolescents countrywide are getting infected with HIV/AIDS daily.
Furthermore, the report revealed that six teenagers die daily from the same disease, highlighting the severity of the crisis.
Health Ministry PS Susan Mochache expressed concern over an upsurge in pregnancy cases among teenagers, citing the need for urgent action to address the issue.
Statistics from the report show that last year, 430,825 pregnant adolescents sought antenatal checkups, with 1 in 10 girls in Kenya being pregnant in 2018.
Out of the above pregnant cases, 430,000 adolescents aged between 10-19 years delivered successfully, but 5,286 mothers and 3,242 babies were found to be HIV positive and missed Antiretroviral medication.
The report also highlighted that among the counties that reported the highest cases of teenage pregnancies are Tana River, Siaya, Busia, Meru, Narok, and Kisii.
Additionally, the report showed that for every 1000 infants, 52 of them die before their fifth birthday, underscoring the need for improved healthcare services.
