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Teenage pregnancies expected to drop further

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A ‘Sejambak Kasih Deepavali’ recipient receiving a cash contribution from the Minister of Welfare, Community Wellbeing, Women, Family and Childhood Education, Dato Sri Hajah Fatimah Abdullah (third right).

KUCHING: Teenage pregnancies in Sarawak are expected to be further reduced this year. Minister of Welfare, Community Wellbeing, Women, Family and Childhood Education, Dato Sri Hajah Fatimah Abdullah said there were 4,000 teenage pregnancies in 2013. They dropped in 2014 when the target was set to reduce the cases by at least 10% every year. “In 2017, there were 2,130 teenage pregnancies in Sarawak and for this year, up to September, there were 992 cases. “That means there is a further decrease.

For this year, there are only two months left,” she said at “Majlis Sejambak Kasih Hari Deepavali”, a dinner organised by the Sarawak Welfare Department, at Merdeka Palace Hotel here on Tuesday night. She added: “I believe there will be a further reduction this year.

I want to thank all quarters which have worked very hard to assist us in educating our students and the community. “But it is still not good enough as we still rank second after Sabah in terms of teenage pregnancies,” added Fatimah. “So we still have to work very hard and we are targeting students and we are looking at the statistics given by the Health Department for schools with teenage pregnancy cases.”

Fatimah said the Sexual Education Advocacy Awareness Programme had been held in 17 schools involving 3, 439 students so far this year. One of the programmes held during “Majilis Sejambak Kasih Deepavali” was a ceramah on “Child Marriage” by Vimala Devi Nadeson Murugiah.

Meanwhile, 45 recipients of Welfare Department’s monthly welfare assistance received a contribution of RM100 cash and hampers worth RM50 each at the event.

Minister of Welfare, Community Wellbeing, Women, Family and Childhood Education, Dato Sri Hajah Fatimah Abdullah (sixth right) posing with the ‘Sejambak Kasih Deepavali’ recipients and others in Kuching on Tuesday night.
A ‘Sejambak Kasih Deepavali’ recipient receiving a cash contribution from the Minister of Welfare, Community Wellbeing, Women, Family and Childhood Education, Dato Sri Hajah Fatimah Abdullah (third right).

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