| Girl Child Pregnancy Prevention Campaign Forum |
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The Campaign Forum was chaired by the Director for OPARD/ SL Mr. Ahmed Muckson Sesay, In his opening remarks, the chairman spoke at length on the negativity of girl child pregnancy and emphasize the purpose of the forum in which he said is to discuss the problems currently facing the girl child especially the alarming pregnancy rate within the Yoni Chiefdom. He sited that "when a child is born poor and that child gave birth to a child, that child would be considered the poorest of the poor" he concluded, He employs participants to contribute actively to map out strategies that would help to overcome this life threatening difficulties. Various organizations, includes Journalist for Human Rights, Timap for Justice, Concern World Wide and Marie Stepes, Local council and Chiefdom Administration were present in this forum In her remarks, Representive of Ministry of Social Welfare, Children and Gender Affairs Sierra Leone, Mrs. Ozanatu Morieba, emphasize that modalities already in place by the government, to adress the welfere of girl-child, in which she said, "as a result of these high rate girl child pregnancy issues, after the eleven year rebel war, the government has created a family support unit which work in collaboration with the police to address this issue" she further spoke on the economic burden that has added, and said "instead of one now catering for herself , she now has to cater for an addition of one plus", she went on to talk on the current statistic of girl children that have sat to the BECE, she noted that " many of the young girls have already been impregnated before BECE exam, and many of them may never go back to school after they deliver babies, thus considerably increase the number of girl child drop out of school." Mrs Morieba added that almost all the schools, in this area are victims. she advice perpetrator to desist as heavy punishment will be fall on them when they involved with such grave hazards.
Another speaker , Mr. Alfred Samsado Forfanah of "Conern World Wide Organization" express gratitude to OPARD-SL building standard of the girl child as people know concern that is working to improve living standards of people concern also have taking a survey wherein they noticed that Kholifa Mabang, Malal Mara, and Yoni Chiefdom are the poorest of the poor. In another development, Mr. Alfred Samsado Forfanah recommended Concern Authority should join efforts with OPARD SL as they already took a bold step in addressing the present plight surrounding the gild child in which he stated "if OPARD SL succeed we have succeed, you have succeed and I have succeed. " he concluded, He highlighted that such problems occur as a result of larking awareness’ on both sides, he further went on asking question on what to do as administrators , Social Welfare, Timap For Justice, Marie Sopes, concern and other organization should do to stop this negativity.
To culminate the event, OPARD-SL Drama Skit portray the circumstances that leads to child pregnancy and the importance of girl child education, in which according to the drama, an educated girl child bring education and benefit to whole communityl, the drama went on to stage that, since parent today lack monitoring and supervision of their children activities in school and other activities, instead of attending extra classes they divert to visit their boy friends, which contributed to pregnancy, health and life implications and later lost of life during abortion. Other parent uses their girl child for economic benefits. When they ask for permission to get out in the streets, the mother will just ask her child to send something for her without giving her business, at the end of the day the child was pregnant, without knowing the correct man as she was chasing a lot of men. The skit also explain of a girl child who persevere and go through his education up to university back home and brought development for not only for her family but the chiefdom and the country as whole.
Othere speakers includes:
Key factors responsible for girl child pregnancy
  
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OPARD-SL through a grant support from the Journalists for Human Rights hosted a Girl Child Pregnancy Prevention Campaign Forum at Mile 91, Sierra Leone . The objective is to decrease instances of girl-child pregnancy before age 16 in Tonkolili District. As it stands now Girl-child pregnancy remains a persistent problem in the Mile 91 comminity. Girl-children, which we define to between 12 and 16 years of age, are vulnerable to marriage and/ or sexual relations with older men because of economic and/or family pressures. 
