When a teenage girl wants to get an education and finish school, nothing should get in her way.
For 19-year-old Adadechei, it wasn’t that simple. She lives in rural Nigeria and had never heard of nor had access to reproductive choices like contraception. A couple of years ago, she gave birth and dropped out of school, like many of her peers.
“I know a lot of other girls who are 14, 15, 16, that have had to drop out of school, and once they give birth they don’t go back. Most of them just keep on giving birth, just like that.”
Others are desperate to end their pregnancies when they find out. “I’ve known people that had an unsafe abortion by drinking concoctions, putting things inside their vagina and all of that. And in our village here, there’s been two or so people that have died because they bled to death.”
Adadechei’s days are busy with taking care of her son, farming and selling produce at the local market. But the thought of going back to school lights her up.
“I really want to go back to school again and get a better life for myself and my child. I don’t want pregnancy or childbirth to limit me to where I am just being a dropout. I want to go back to school, as well as go to university to become the person I want to be.”
When she chooses a contraceptive method from an MSI mobile health team visiting her community, she smiles knowing what this could mean for her future.
There are millions of teenage girls who dream of sitting in school rooms or lecture halls, spending their days learning and building skills and knowledge. But they still don’t have access to contraception and face a hard reality of pregnancies they don’t want.
MSI is changing that. With contraception, young women can get the education they desire and deserve. With reproductive choices, young women can change their paths.
