Fighting Teen Pregancy on World Population Day

from family planning 2020

July 11 is World Population Day. The theme this year: adolescent pregnancy. Or, more accurately raising awareness about the health risks to adolescents of pregnancy and building momentum for greater access to family planning services to avoid unwanted pregnancies.

The statistics are shocking. Pregnancy is by far the leading cause of death of women and girls aged 15-19 in the developing world.  In all, there are about 16 million teenage pregnancies each year, 95% of which occur in the developing world. 50,000 adolescents die from childbirth; 2 million are left with chronic illness.

The most basic way to reverse this trend is to provide access to modern family planning services. 

There are some great events going on on social media to raise awareness about adolescent pregnancy today. Use the hashtag #WorldPopDay.