Lane Thimmesch

According to the Guttmacher Institute, comprehensive sex education (CSE) has the ability to equip young people with the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and values they need to determine and enjoy their sexuality. However, in Kenya, CSE remains stigmatized due to accusations of ‘sexualizing children’ or encouraging promiscuity.

There is a lack of understanding of what CSE entails, which in turn affects the health outcomes of young Kenyans.

In Kenya, over a third (39 percent) of the population is below 15 years old, and 24 percent of the population is aged between 10-19 years old.

There is also a lack of adequate access to sexual and reproductive health (SRH) information and education, as well as insufficient access to health commodities and services for young people, which increases risk for STIs (including HIV), early pregnancy, and sexual and gender based violence (SGBV).

Considering there is such a large number of young people in Kenya, CSE can aid the transition into adulthood. Studies show that integrated CSE content positively influences young people to make better personal SRH decisions, and empowers them to seek out information to address their SRH choices. However, many young people in Kenya are not given the opportunity for CSE in their school environment.

Although sexual health messaging is present in many Kenyan schools, it is often coded with conservative values and heavily focuses on abstinence. Past studies have found that teachers strongly emphasize that sex is immoral and dangerous.

Instead, sexual education most often focuses on reproductive physiology and HIV prevention. A comprehensive curriculum that includes values and interpersonal skills, gender and sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), modern contraception, and preventing pregnancy is not often implemented, with only two percent of students reporting that they learned all of these topics.

Due to the lack of CSE integrated in schools in Kenya, young people feel shame surrounding their sexual decisions and are often unable to ask questions. According to KNBS, only 11 percent of sexually active teenagers in Kenya are using contraceptives.

The judgement around CSE information forces young people to make uninformed and often risky sexual decisions, which makes them vulnerable to unplanned pregnancies and STIs.

The stigma that surrounds CSE must end. All community stakeholders play a part in ensuring that young people feel safe and informed in their bodies and sexual decisions.

First, there is a need for more advocacy to demystify CSE and promote its countrywide acceptability. These efforts should specifically be targeted at policymakers to enhance their understanding of CSE and better inform their lawmaking.

Furthermore, collaboration among stakeholders (such as parents, religious leaders, teachers, and policymakers) is essential to develop a standardized universal curriculum, which can then be implemented among youth in Kenya.

This collaborative curriculum will greatly help young Kenyans reach their full potential success as they grow into adulthood.

Lane Thimmesch, American University Student