National Policy for the Reintegration of Adolescent Mothers into the Formal School System
UNICEF supports the right of every child to vital information, skills and supportive environments in which to grow up and reach their full potential is very critical.
Highlights
Education is a human right acknowledged in several international Conventions as a “multiplier right”;essentially as it creates an avenue to realize other human rights. To achieve this right and the objectives of Guyana Vision 2030 that will positively impact the lives of adolescents and their families, it is imperative that a policy is put in place to address the problem of adolescent pregnancy and school-age mothers.
The right of every Guyanese child to basic quality education is both a constitutional requirement and a legal obligation as a signatory to several International Agreements. Notwithstanding that fact, in practice, pregnant girls of school-age and adolescent mothers are denied an opportunity to realize that right by being excluded from the education process upon detection of pregnancy; a decision that has a significant impact on their lives and that of their children. Even though there is no national law, school-based policy or regulation that explicitly requires the expulsion or exclusion of pregnant students or adolescent mothers from continuing their education or re-entering the formal school system the practice still exists. Hence, there is a need for this National Policy on the Reintegration of Adolescent Mothers into the Formal School System.
