MPs discussing the new draft law on granting access to contraceptives for teens aged 15 and above/ Rwanda Parliament
Members of the Parliamentary Committee on Social Affairs commenced the review of a draft law on Monday, 17 February 2025, that proposes significant changes to the regulation of health services for young people.
The proposed legislation, first approved on 5 November 2024, includes a provision allowing individuals aged 15 and older to independently access family planning services without the need for parental consent.
In addition to granting minors the right to access reproductive health services, the draft law also ensures that young people aged 15 and above can receive reproductive health information and make decisions regarding their health without parental involvement.
The law specifically designates 15 as the minimum legal age for such decisions.
The Ministry of Gender and Family Promotion’s latest statistics underscore the urgency of the issue.
In 2024 alone, 22,454 adolescents were victims of sexual assault, leading to pregnancies, further highlighting a growing societal concern.
These figures reflect a troubling trend: from 19,701 adolescent pregnancies in 2020, to 23,111 in 2021, and 24,472 in 2022.
While the number slightly decreased to 22,055 in 2023, the rate of adolescent pregnancies remains alarmingly high.
Health experts have noted that current preventive measures, such as promoting abstinence and condom use, have not been sufficiently effective in addressing the issue.
In response, health authorities have advocated for enhanced access to family planning resources for adolescents, recognising it as a crucial step towards reducing unintended pregnancies.
Recent health and social welfare studies reveal that many young women aged 15-19 have experienced abortion or are currently pregnant or raising children.
Most of these young individuals come from rural areas and have completed only primary or secondary education.
Furthermore, research indicates that a significant number of adolescents are engaging in sexual activity earlier than recommended.
According to the data, 4.5 per cent of girls and 10.1 per cent of boys had sexual intercourse before the age of 15, with some already parents.
A 2023 study on contraceptive use among adolescent girls in Africa showed that the overall prevalence of contraceptive use among sexually active adolescent girls was over 25 per cent.
Namibia recorded the highest rate at 60.5 per cent, while Chad had the lowest at just 4 per cent.
The study found that more than 90 per cent of the countries surveyed had a contraceptive use rate below 50 per cent among sexually active adolescent girls.
Another research in 2018 on the need for effective contraception showed that among the 53 million women aged 15-19 in Sub-Saharan Africa, 23 per cent (12.1 million) require contraception.
The most commonly used methods include male condoms, injectables, and the pill, although significant gaps remain in meeting the reproductive health needs of young people.
Through the EU-funded Solution for Supporting Health Adolescent and Rights Protection (SHARP) the Rwanda Ngo Forum On Aids And Health Promotion (RNGOF) is advocating and pushing for improved supply for SRH for adolescents and increased demand for SRH services through religious and social cultural interventions.
