The law governing reproductive health is being amended to revise access to family planning methods from 18 to 15 year-olds. Some people might find the decision controversial, especially the conservative types, but it is hinged on reality. For starters; statistics show that young people younger than 18 – the age of consent – especially girls, are getting more and more sexually active. It is the age bracket where they are more vulnerable and can easily succumb to peer pressure and are increasingly the target for teenage pregnancies. However, the most alarming thing is that more and more HIV/Aids cases are being reported in that age group than any other, so authorities are caught between a rock and a hard place; on one hand, there is the possibility of contracting Aids, on the other there is the scourge of teenage pregnancies. This move to avail contraceptives and preservatives to children 15 years and older is sure to attract flak from religious groups, especially the Catholic Church that has been a firm opponent of family planning methods other than abstinence. But religious orders do not give alternatives if abstinence fails, they don’t seem to give a plan B, however, dogma decides for them which route to take. But what about parents? They should put aside their timidity as the future of their children is at stake. They should not hesitate to take their adolescent children through the paces of sexual education. Today the world is going through many disruptive stages, so cultural or religious barriers cannot stand in the way if it is a matter of life and age.
