Royal Angels : Two Years On.

There seems to be an endemic in my village. Young teenage girls of school age are getting pregnant like there was some competition thereby increasing the number of girls dropping out of school every year. These girls who can barely take care of themselves become mothers without proper information about their bodies;child care, finances. They are also not emotionally ready for the challenges of motherhood. Some of them are so young that one can tell that their bodies aren't fully formed yet. It's a pathetic sight.

I began the campaign against teenage pregnancy last year,promoting education in it's place .

My aim is to enlighten young girls on the importance of education as against dropping out of school due to pregnancy.

Last year,I started the campaign and hosted an event where I had one hundred and eighty-six girls in attendance. The gathering birthed a girls club- Royal Angels.

On the 16th of August 2025, to be precise, I hosted the second edition.

During the course of my meeting with the girls,I had asked for what challenges any of them had faced during the last school session . The replies ranged from no school sandals, school bags and lack of school fees to lateness to class .

Ten of the girls had told of how they had no school bags leading to carrying the books in their hands. Some,used polythene bags as school bags.

The other set,had no school shoes and wore torn slippers to school .

A few others had torn school uniforms,some had them torn

While another set of the attendees told of how they were made to go to the farm very early by their mothers first, before going to school several times during the session leading to their being caned by their teachers for late coming as they got to school hours behind after classes resumed.

I had taken down the number of the girls without school bags,school sandals( they wore torn slippers instead) and hope to buy them these before the new school session commences in September.

A particular girl owed last term school fees and was initially not allowed to write her third term examination but was later allowed after much pleading. I called her out,asked her to come to my house where I got her information. I took her to a trusted teacher and community woman leader ,after explaining her situation, I gave the woman her last term's fee and the new term's. I got the woman's contact for follow -up.

I realised that to keep most of them in school we need more than pep talks and add a bit of meeting their basic school needs.

To my thinking some of these unmet basic needs might be instrumental to their being exposed to men who might want to get provide these in exchange for sex.

I touched .menstrual hygiene too and the importance of cleanliness before during and after.

On this too ,i realised that many didn't have access to pad.

One of the girls shared how she cuts her old clothes into pieces and use as pad.

Another shared on how she reuses her old cut clothes ,washing and drying after each use .

One participant shared on how if her mother does not buy her pads,she goes to work on other people's farms to raise money to by them herself.

Helping with these can become instrumental to reducing number that gets pregnant every year.

On the flip side,we had three girls who had attended last year's event pregnant. It was so sad.

I hope to save as many as I can . I won't get discouraged not now ,not anytime soon.

Like we say in Nigerian parlance: We move!