*names in this blog have been changed to protect individual privacy
Around the world, 13% of adolescent girls and young women give birth before age 18–most of these pregnancies are unintended. In Kenya, 1 in 5 adolescent girls has an unmet need for family planning, and 1 in 6 is already a mother. Lizzy Shamron* is a young mother who has experienced an unintended pregnancy. “I was scared to have sex, I didn’t want to become pregnant, but my boyfriend convinced me it couldn’t happen on my first time,” Lizzy says. “I was 15 years old. I thought my period would come, but it never did.”
Access to sexual and reproductive health information and care remains out of reach for many young people. Teenage mothers face additional stigma and barriers–including peer pressure, poverty, gender-based violence, and negative attitudes of health care providers. But when teen mothers have the care networks, skills, and space to lead, they can improve care for themselves and envision their futures before, during, and after pregnancy.
Rebecca Oluoch, a program officer at Lwala working with adolescents and young people, has seen the transformation of care for teen mothers. “So many girls became pregnant earlier than expected and dropped out of school,” she remembers. “Lwala was driven to find solutions.” When young girls like Lizzy have accurate information about their bodies, are empowered to ask questions, and have access to contraception and antenatal care, more pathways to better health are possible.
Creating networks of care for teen mothers
Lwala’s support for teen mothers stretches back to 2017, when CHWs, concerned parents, school administrators, and local government in our founding community came together to understand how to support young girls who became pregnant.“We noted that young girls wanted to go back to school post delivery, but were worried about who will take care of their children back at home and the perceived judgment from peers and teachers,” says Sam Oyugi, senior program manager overseeing Lwala’s adolescents and youth programming. “So we introduced a small cash transfer through the caregivers to support their children. As an organization, our intention was clear: to promote school enrollment and retention through a quarterly stipend–to give girls a second chance.”
Lwala and community members co-created Broadened Horizons, a program that supports teen mothers who have dropped out of school and provides access to mentorship, contraceptive access, and school re-entry. Lwala also partnered with Migori County’s Ministry of Health and Ministry of Education to implement the national return to school policy, which aims to ensure respectful treatment of young mothers returning to school after pregnancy. Today, Broadened Horizons supports young mothers to return to school, and between 2021 to 2024 777 girls enrolled and 196 have graduated high school so far.
Over time, Lwala has innovated new ways for young mothers like Lizzy to feel connected and supported throughout their pregnancy–and to ensure they receive resources to prevent pregnancy in the future. In 2022, Lwala expanded our support for teen mothers, empowering them with information to safely manage their labor journey through CHWs and youth peer providers–young people equipped with skills and training to improve access to sexual and reproductive health services. Throughout their pregnancy, participants meet monthly in group antenatal care sessions, access open maternity days in nearby facilities, and are accompanied to deliver with a skilled provider.
Lindsey Carren, a youth peer provider, says, “During group antenatal care sessions, young girls meet each other and share their experiences without judgement. Youth peer providers like me become a shoulder for them to lean on.” After giving birth, Lwala helps ensure they have access to postpartum family planning options and school materials to help them return to school. For those who don’t return to school, Lwala links them to training opportunities for business, digital work, and life skills.
“In this initiative to reduce teen pregnancy, a whole community effort is necessary, involving everyone. We must sensitize teachers so that girls feel welcome back at school, men so they learn the negative impacts of their actions, and community advisory boards so that we reduce the stigma.”
- Evance Odhiambo, Youth Peer Provider Lead in Nyatike Subcounty
The support Lwala provides for teen mothers is integrated into our broader youth-led sexual and reproductive health programming, where we partner with the Ministry of Health, youth peer providers, and community committees like community advisory boards and youth committees. Youth peer providers promote access to sexual and reproductive health information and a range of modern contraceptive methods to youth throughout the community. Youth committees gather to discuss community issues, including teen pregnancy and then escalate to community leaders and decision-makers. And community advisory boards sensitize communities and manage cases related to gender-based violence, HIV, and teen pregnancy.
Lizzy recalls the support and connection from a youth peer provider in her community, saying, “Before joining, I lost confidence. I was shy and afraid of all the stigma. But this group helped me share freely and see a life after pregnancy. Now, when I meet young girls like me, I talk about things like skilled delivery or saving up for childcare. It feels super to give them the support I needed.”
These tiers of care have improved health for teen mothers and their children. Since 2022, we have partnered with 45 facilities to support nearly 1,600 teen moms. Women in Lwala-supported communities are 2.6 times more likely to use contraception. A recent study also shows that that our model significantly increases contraceptive uptake from 59% pre-intervention to 66% after intervention–and in the sites where Lwala has implemented community-led health the longest, we saw the highest use of contraceptives at 70%, compared to 55% to 69% in other areas. Young mothers have resources for safe, skilled deliveries and contraception–but more than that, they see their own potential.
“The girls’ smiles are what I am most proud of. They feel supported, mentored, and encouraged during the counselling sessions. They become more self-reliant, develop high self-esteem, start kitchen gardens and make soaps to buy diapers, and return to school. We now see a different picture from where they started.”
- Rebecca Oluoch, Adolescent & Youth Program Officer
Growing through collective solutions and lasting systems
Lwala expanded its youth-led sexual and reproductive health to all of Migori in 2024–we now reach 400,000 youth. Our vision is to expand youth-led sexual and reproductive health to new counties like Homa Bay and Baringo, where nearly 1 in 5 girls aged 15-19 have been pregnant. “Our priority counties are those where people still don’t see it as a big issue when a young girl gets pregnant,” says Sam. “As we design our expansion, we carry along lessons from Migori–including our belief that if more girls are educated, they will be more informed and will be less likely to become pregnant.”
Lasting impact requires systems change, including policy and government ownership. Following the launch of the the National Adolescent and Youth Reproductive Health Policy last year, we are reigniting momentum for the National Family Planning Policy, School Health Policy, and Adolescent Health Policy—all of which play a role in addressing teen pregnancy, innovating psychosocial and disability support systems, amplifying the rights of teen mothers, and protecting health workers and youth peer providers.
Health systems can protect the rights and dreams of all young people–including Lizzy. “From the teen moms group I now have support from others, people I can talk with and trust. We also help each other,” she says. “I want to prove to my community that my life isn’t over because I was pregnant. I can still pursue my dreams.”
Learn more about Lwala’s youth-led sexual and reproductive health initiatives that give young people the skills and space to lead, transforming care for themselves and their peers in our new video:
Safeguarding at Lwala
Lwala is committed to safeguarding the rights and wellbeing of children, young people and adults at risk. If you or any other person who interacts with our programming ever feels unsafe or witnesses abuse, harassment or violent behavior you can report it anonymously, without any fear of reprisal. This is also true if you also ever witness unethical, fraudulent, or illegal behavior with young people related to Lwala programs or if you are asked for a kick-back or a bribe. Three easy options for reporting are now available:
- Call this toll-free number: 0800- 720- 584
- Email: lwala@speakouthotline.com
- Submit a form on the SpeakOut platform: app.speakouthotline.com
