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Comprehensive sexuality education is the way to go

LETTER | The recent revelation by the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development with reference to a total of 79,302 teenage pregnancies between 2012 and 2016 alarmed the nation.

This figure, which was cited by the deputy health minister yielded the average figure of 4,000 teenage pregnancies a year. In a country that is considered upper-middle income and a signatory to many international conventions related to children, the question in mind is "Why are teenage pregnancies still so prevalent here in Malaysia?”

The sad reality is despite making up a large percentage of the population in developing countries, including Malaysia, adolescents have limited choices regarding their sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and are oblivious of their rights. They are unable to access complete and comprehensive sexuality education which includes rights-based and gender-focused elements.

Access to youth-friendly SRH services, where available, is also not widely known by the younger population of this country. In order to mend the gap, Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) for in and out of school adolescents is the missing piece in the puzzle. A well-implemented and closely-monitored CSE can help reduce unintended pregnancies and transmission rates for sexually transmitted infections, which in turn can improve health outcomes and help keep girls in schools.

The Federation of Reproductive Health Associations Malaysia (FRHAM) recently conducted a study on "Comprehensive Sexuality Education for Malaysian Adolescents.” Based on specific criteria, the study reviewed the development and delivery of CSE in Malaysia, identified existing gaps towards effective implementation and recommended interventions needed to make the existing sexuality programmes more inclusive, comprehensive and engaging for the Malaysian adolescents.

This study was carried out through strategic desk review, 14 focus group discussions (FGDs) involving 104 adolescents and 29 parents/teachers and four in-depth interviews with key informants from various ministries/ agencies.

The results from the desk review, FGDs and informants found that despite the milestones achieved by Malaysia in the area of sexual reproductive health, adolescents and CSE, there were still many more issues surrounding adolescents today like teenage pregnancies, sexual violence, child sexual grooming.

A curriculum that is based on abstinence instead of informed-choice, lack of parental and family support compounded by lack of a robust monitoring and evaluation mechanism, untrained teachers and lack of political willpower have also decelerated the progress.

In conclusion, the implementation of CSE in Malaysia has been dampened by several gaps and challenges that exist within the country. In order to meet the SRH needs of our young people and contribute towards reducing teenage pregnancies in the country, effective measures must be taken to create a more inclusive healthcare and education system for the young population of this country.

A comprehensive curriculum, support system, coverage of beneficiaries, policies, monitoring & evaluation mechanisms and strategic collaboration needs to be in place in order to mend the gap and keeping the principle of Sustainable Development Goals of "leaving no one behind”.

As such, we should consolidate our efforts and work towards addressing these issues in a strategic manner. In the past, many individuals and groups that have advocated this matter have been accused of taking a liberal stand on an issue that is regarded as culturally sensitive.

If taking an orthodox stand of subscribing to cultural practices and norms at the expense of sacrificing more young lives like the recent case of a teenage girl found dead with her newborn baby in her house toilet; then it is time to revisit our stand and ask ourselves if we are really doing justice to these victims.

We applaud our prime minister's stand on raising the minimum age of marriage to 18 years for all the states in Malaysia. The next equally important step is to ensure that CSE is implemented effectively within and outside of the school system. This is definitely a step towards ensuring that Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) are made available and is easily accessed by every young person in our country.

This is an important measure in ensuring that our children will be able to make informed choices regarding their SRHR and make healthy, safe and responsible choices in the future.


The writer is vice-chairperson, Federation of Reproductive Health Associations.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.

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