Ntsoaki Motaung
A recent survey has shed light on the troubling socio-economic factors driving some women to give birth at home and contributing to early marriages, particularly in rural and impoverished communities.
The recently published annual Vulnerability Assessment Report of 2024 reveals that 6.5 percent of households surveyed reported home deliveries, a concerning statistic linked primarily to long distances from health facilities and a lack of transportation funds.
Out of the 153 households surveyed, 10 reported home births.
A staggering 70 percent of these cases cited the long distance to health facilities as the primary reason, while 30 percent pointed to the lack of money for transport.
Disturbingly, all households reporting home deliveries fell within the “very poor” or “poor” categories, underscoring the direct impact of poverty on maternal health.
The survey also found that 4.4 percent of households had a member who gave birth during the survey period, with a significant portion of these new mothers being teenagers. Specifically, 19.6 percent of the reported births were from mothers aged 19 years or younger, with some as young as 10 to 14 years old.
Sexual violence and its consequences
The report also highlighted the prevalence of sexual violence within the surveyed households.
A total of 44 households reported incidents of sexual violence, with the majority occurring in rural areas and in households headed by females. The data shows that sexual violence is most common in households where the head is aged 35-64 years (57 percent), followed by those aged 25-34 years (21 percent), and 65 years and older (16 percent).
The impact of sexual violence extends beyond the immediate trauma, as 52 percent of affected households had members living with HIV.
The survey also revealed a worrying trend: despite the prevalence of sexual violence, 38.6 percent of cases went unreported, reflecting the ongoing challenges in addressing and preventing such crimes.
Child marriage: An angoing challenge
Child marriage, according to the report, remains a pressing issue, with around one percent of households reporting that a member was married before the age of 18 within the last year.
These marriages predominantly occurred in rural areas, particularly in female-headed households classified as very poor or poor. The children involved were mostly aged 15 to 17, with 17 being the most common age at marriage.
The primary reasons cited for these early marriages were pregnancy, peer pressure, lack of food, and adherence to social norms.
The survey highlights a grim cycle where poverty, lack of education, and societal pressures force young girls into marriages that further perpetuate their vulnerability.
HIV prevalence among adolescents
The survey also examined the HIV status of households with adolescents, revealing concerning statistics.
Among households with female adolescents aged 10 to 14, 30 percent reported having an HIV-positive member, with the figure rising to 35 percent for those with female adolescents aged 15 to 19.
Similarly, 30 percent of households with male adolescents aged 10 to 14 reported an HIV-positive member, and the percentage increased to 34 percent for those with male adolescents aged 15 to 19.
