Teen pregnancy is down by half over the last 19 years. This is something to celebrate but not stop working on because the rate should be zero. No one aged 10-15 should become a mother.
In 2000, 21 babies were born to mothers aged 10-17 every day, on average. Last year, that figure dropped to 11 per day, meaning it was reduced by almost half. In 2000, births to teenage mothers represented 8.5% of total births and in 2018 they represented 6.4%.
This could have a positive effect on poverty as teenage mothers often come from poor areas and get stuck in a cycle they can’t escape, while those who do not get pregnant typically keep studying and have more options in the future.
Many factors contributed to the decrease in teen pregnancies. The Ministry of Education started sex ed classes in school teaching about protection. The CCSS started offering long-term protection methods to minors such as IUDs and subdermal implants. These were offered first in 11 cantons of Limón and Puntarenas where the teenage pregnancy rates were highest. Five of these cantons were among the top ten with greatest reductions.
