Girl who gave birth in dormitory cleared to continue with KCSE exams

A Form Four girl in Busia who delivered on Tuesday night inside her school dormitory has been cleared by doctors to continue with her exams.

The candidate, from a school in Budalang’i, is reportedly strong and healthy enough to continue with her exams.

Sources told the Star the girl’s colleagues helped her safely deliver in the dormitory.

Bunyala subcounty Education director George Owuoche said the girl, after delivery, was rushed to a local hospital for a check-up before she was cleared by medical personnel to return to school.

“She was accorded the necessary medical attention just like any other lady who has delivered before doctors released her,” Owuoche said on the phone.

The girl is candidate number 37 in her school.

The teenager is among some 903,260 candidates sitting for the 2023 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education exams.

The KCSE examinations commenced on October 23, with candidates sitting for their practical papers first.

The national exam is set to run till November 24, ending with a Physics practical paper.

Incidents of candidates giving birth when exams are ongoing are common.

The girl delivered three days after Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu told learners to avoid relationships that may interfere with their education.

The CS who was in Busia’s Teso North subcounty to oversee the sealing of KCSE exam papers said learners should focus on their studies and avoid engaging in intimate affairs which can lead to expectancy.

“Do not allow yourselves to be cheated by young boys and old men,” the CS said while at Kolanya Girls National School.

“Focus on your studies, complete exams, and get a job before you begin thinking of getting a family.”

In 2020, the Education Ministry warned parents and guardians of girls who give birth during exams that they risked arrest as the government cracked the whip on kangaroo courts covering teenage pregnancies.

Education Principal Secretary Belio Kipsang, then, said expectant candidates have continued to give birth in between exam papers as a result of pregnancy cover-ups.

The PS termed the development a security concern promising to collaborate with other government agencies to crack down on kangaroo courts which he said have continued to encourage teenage pregnancies.

He said the ministry will be sending officers to villages where people make local arrangements to release culprits impregnating school girls.

Education ministry guidelines command that when a girl tests positive for expectancy, such a learner is required to remain in school until delivery time when she can be allowed to return home to facilitate birth.

After delivery, such learners are required to be re-admitted to their previous schools or any institution of their choice.