BLESSING TAIWO
A non-governmental organisation, (FFAF), has charged female students to abstain from sexual intercourse before marriage, to prevent teenage pregnancy.
This is as educational materials were distributed to the female students from Herbert Macaulay Girls High School and Birrel Avenue High School, both at Yaba in Lagos state.
The empowerment programme with the theme, ‘Fulfil Purpose’, was organised by FFAF on Tuesday, with no fewer than 350 girls as beneficiaries.
Enlightening the students on sexual education, Founder of Fortress for All Foundation, Mrs Debola Okusanya warned against having sexual intercourse before marriage, to avoid getting pregnant.
Okusanya urged the girls to have good self-esteem, shun peer pressure, and make the right choices to safeguard their future.
She enjoined them to place value on themselves, their education and to remain focused on their dreams.
“You have to start thinking of what you want to do in the next five years.
“A lot of girls out-of-school have their dreams shattered, destinies destroyed,” she said.
The FFAF founder recommended tips to help them stay focused, namely; dreaming big, documenting their dreams, setting goals, staying educated and locating mentors to help give them direction.
In an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Mrs Okusanya, who is also a Christian cleric, explained that the NGO aims to assist teenage mothers get back their lives, by encouraging them to go back to school or in some cases, acquire skills, which will make them become self-reliant.
“As a girl in Nigeria and many African countries, there is already a lot of problems with the girl child, so, by getting pregnant, their dreams and visions are truncated.
“Getting pregnant between the age of 12 and 17 also makes it seem like that person’s future is dead.
“So, we have a vision that will help these children with children get back their lives, so to speak,” she told NAN.
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