At a high school in the North-East of South Africa, 36 students are pregnant. The girls at the school in the village of Vhembe be between 14 and 18 years old, said the spokesman of the Ministry of health of the province of Limpopo, Neil Shikhwambana. “It is surprising. Normally, it should not be in school so many pregnancies.” The Klasbahis authorities investigated the reasons, he explained. The Gymnasium in the nearby town of Thohoyandou have about 900 pupils.

teen pregnancy in South Africa is a common phenomenon, especially in rural areas such as Limpopo. Nationwide around 15 percent of all girls before the age of 19. Year of life one or more children, as Figures from the statistics authority show. Experts blame, among other things, a lack of knowledge about contraception options, poverty, and cases of sexual abuse.

epp / DPA