Teen Pregnancies Surge among Girls under 15 in Cape Mount

The number of girls below the age of 15 reported pregnant in Grand Cape Mount County rose from 94 in 2024 to 161 in 2025, representing an increase of approximately 71 percent, according to data presented by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

The increase of 67 cases has raised concerns about adolescent reproductive health, access to family planning, and the capacity of the county’s health system to provide adequate maternal care for young girls.

James S. Weah of UNFPA disclosed the figures during a presentation on maternal and adolescent health, highlighting the growing burden of early pregnancy alongside shortages of midwives, inadequate health infrastructure, and barriers to accessing medical services in Grand Cape Mount and other parts of Liberia.

The figures show that pregnancies among girls below 15 increased substantially in just one year, although the presentation did not establish the specific causes of the increase.

The trend is particularly concerning because pregnancy at such a young age can expose girls to serious health risks and threaten their education and future opportunities. Cases involving girls below 15 also require appropriate safeguarding assessments to determine whether sexual abuse, coercion, or exploitation may have occurred.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), adolescent mothers face higher risks of eclampsia, infections and other pregnancy-related complications than women aged 20–24. Their babies also face increased risks of premature birth, low birth weight and severe newborn complications. https://www.who.int/en/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/adolescent-pregnancy”WHO fact sheet on adolescent pregnancy”

Adolescents Account for More Than One-Quarter of Pregnancies

Beyond the figures for girls below 15, Weah’s presentation showed that adolescent pregnancy represents a substantial proportion of pregnancies recorded in Grand Cape Mount County.

In 2024, the county recorded 7,900 pregnancies, including 2,218 involving adolescents, according to the data presented by Weah.

The adolescent figure represents approximately 28 percent of the reported pregnancies, meaning that more than one in four pregnancies recorded in the county involved an adolescent.

Weah said the figures point to the need for stronger interventions to prevent unintended pregnancies, improve reproductive health education and help adolescent girls remain in school.

He also highlighted concerns about the use of family planning services among adolescents.

According to the presentation, fewer than 30 percent of adolescents accessed family planning in 2025, down from approximately 33 percent in 2024.

Weah linked the low uptake to concerns about unintended pregnancies and other reproductive health complications, noting that sexual initiation in Liberia was estimated at around 15 to 16 years.

“If the age of sex first initiation in Liberia is around 15 to 16, and we see our adolescents who only less than one third using family planning, it means we have implications for unwanted pregnancy and other complications,” he said.

He called for greater efforts to ensure that adolescent girls receive appropriate reproductive health information and access to services that can help them prevent unintended pregnancies.

Weah also stressed the importance of keeping girls in school, saying pregnancy prevention and continued education are important to their future.

Nearly 60 Percent of Health Facilities Lack Midwives

The rise in adolescent pregnancies is occurring in a county where maternal healthcare services face significant staffing challenges.

Weah disclosed that nearly 60 percent of health facilities in Grand Cape Mount do not have a midwife, leaving many communities without a trained professional specifically equipped to provide midwifery services.

He described the shortage as a serious concern for maternal health, particularly in facilities that must respond to pregnancy-related complications and childbirth emergencies.

The presentation indicated that Grand Cape Mount has the country’s highest reported midwife-to-women-of-reproductive-age ratio, with one midwife serving more than 1,700 women of reproductive age.

Weah compared this with a benchmark of one midwife for every 175 women of reproductive age cited during the presentation.

The gap suggests that available midwives face a substantial workload, potentially limiting the ability of facilities to provide timely and consistent maternal and reproductive health services.

The staffing shortage also raises concerns about access to skilled birth attendance, antenatal consultations and emergency obstetric care for adolescents who become pregnant.

Weah emphasized that the absence of trained midwives in a large proportion of facilities has implications beyond routine maternal services, especially when complications arise and prompt medical intervention is needed.

Electricity and Water Shortages Affect Healthcare Delivery

In addition to staffing challenges, Grand Cape Mount’s health facilities face gaps in basic infrastructure.

Weah reported that approximately 11 percent of health facilities in the county lack electricity, while around 16.3 percent do not have water.

Electricity is important for providing services during nighttime hours and supporting equipment used in maternal emergencies. Reliable water supplies are essential for handwashing, infection prevention and control, and proper waste management.

Without these services, health workers may face additional difficulties maintaining safe conditions for pregnant women, newborns and other patients.

The deficiencies are particularly concerning in facilities expected to provide maternity services around the clock.

Weah called for improvements in health infrastructure as part of broader efforts to strengthen maternal healthcare and reduce preventable deaths.

More Than One-Third of Residents Face Long Walks to Health Facilities

Access to healthcare remains another major concern in Grand Cape Mount.

According to Weah, approximately 63 percent of the county’s population can reach the nearest health facility within one hour on foot.

This means about 37 percent of residents must walk for more than an hour to access the nearest facility.

The presentation also placed the county’s health-facility density at approximately 1.8 facilities per 10,000 people, below the benchmark of two facilities per 10,000 cited by Weah.

The county’s population-to-health-worker density was reported at 26 against a World Health Organization benchmark of 44.5.

These gaps may make it difficult for residents, particularly those in remote communities, to obtain timely medical attention.

For pregnant adolescents, long distances can create additional obstacles to attending antenatal appointments, reaching a health facility during labour and receiving emergency care when complications develop.

Adolescent Deliveries and Cesarean Sections Raise Concerns

Weah’s presentation also highlighted the number of adolescent girls delivering babies in Grand Cape Mount and the proportion undergoing cesarean sections.

According to the figures presented, adolescents accounted for approximately 27 percent of deliveries in the county.

The presentation also cited approximately 110 adolescent deliveries attended by skilled personnel in 2025, although the precise age breakdown and denominator require confirmation from the original data.

Weah reported that adolescents accounted for approximately 25 percent of cesarean sections in 2024 and around 22 percent in 2025, with approximately 100 adolescent-related cesarean cases recorded in 2025.

A cesarean section is a surgical procedure performed when it is considered the safest option for delivering a baby. It can be lifesaving when medically necessary, but the figures underscore the importance of preventing early pregnancy and ensuring that adolescents who become pregnant receive appropriate medical assessment and care.

Pregnancy during adolescence is associated with an increased risk of certain maternal and newborn complications. Timely antenatal care can help identify risks, while skilled birth attendance and access to emergency obstetric services can help manage complications.

The figures therefore highlight two connected priorities: reducing unintended pregnancies among adolescents and improving the quality of care available to those who are already pregnant.

Antenatal Attendance Declines After First Visit

Grand Cape Mount recorded approximately 95 percent attendance for the first antenatal care visit among pregnant women, according to Weah’s presentation.

However, fewer than half of those who attended their first visit reportedly returned for the fourth visit.

The difference raises concerns about continuity of care during pregnancy.

Antenatal consultations enable healthcare workers to monitor the health of mothers and babies, identify complications, provide preventive services and prepare women for delivery.

Weah described the decline in attendance between the first and fourth visits as concerning, particularly because women may miss opportunities to identify and manage pregnancy-related risks.

The presentation further indicated that approximately 36 percent of pregnant women in the county did not deliver in a health facility.

The figures suggest that a significant proportion of women give birth outside health facilities, although they do not establish whether all such births occurred without skilled assistance.

Weah also raised concerns about women reaching health facilities without being attended by trained professionals, citing the shortage of midwives as one of the challenges facing maternal healthcare.

Bomi County Also Records High Adolescent Pregnancy

The challenges highlighted in Grand Cape Mount are not limited to that county.

Weah also presented figures on adolescent pregnancy and maternal healthcare in Bomi County, where the number of pregnancies reportedly increased from approximately 5,000 in 2024 to 7,000 in 2025.

The presentation cited around 60 pregnancies among girls below 15 in Bomi in 2025.

Adolescents accounted for approximately one-quarter of deliveries in the county, with around 1,500 adolescent girls reportedly giving birth in 2025.

Weah also reported 354 cesarean sections in Bomi in 2024 and 361 in 2025, noting that adolescent girls accounted for slightly more than one-quarter of the cesarean deliveries discussed.

Bomi faces its own healthcare workforce challenges. According to the presentation, one midwife serves more than 800 women of reproductive age, while approximately 28 percent of health facilities do not have a midwife.

Weah cautioned that countywide staffing figures may conceal differences in the distribution of health workers. Midwives concentrated in hospitals or semi-urban areas may not be available to women in more remote communities.

The presentation indicated that approximately 57 percent of Bomi’s population could reach a health facility within one hour on foot, suggesting that many residents face lengthy journeys to access care.

Weah also expressed concern about family planning uptake among adolescents in Bomi and called for greater efforts to help girls prevent unintended pregnancies and complete their education.

Calls for Action to Protect Young Girls

The figures presented by Weah underscore the need for a coordinated response involving health authorities, education officials, parents, community leaders and development partners.

Priorities include expanding access to age-appropriate reproductive health information, improving adolescent-friendly health services, strengthening family planning counselling and ensuring that young girls can obtain appropriate care without stigma or discrimination.

For girls below 15 who become pregnant, healthcare responses should include confidential, compassionate medical care and appropriate safeguarding assessments to identify possible abuse, coercion or exploitation. Their safety and protection must remain central to the response.

Improving maternal healthcare also requires recruiting and deploying trained midwives, providing electricity and water to health facilities, strengthening emergency referral systems and reducing the distance people must travel to obtain care.

The reported increase in pregnancies among girls below 15 in Grand Cape Mount—from 94 cases in 2024 to 161 in 2025—places renewed focus on the urgent need to protect young girls and address barriers to reproductive healthcare.

While the figures alone do not explain the causes of the increase, they highlight the importance of reliable data, stronger prevention programmes, effective child-protection mechanisms and accessible maternal health services.

For Grand Cape Mount, addressing adolescent pregnancy will require more than encouraging girls to remain in school. It will also require ensuring that they are protected from abuse and exploitation, have access to appropriate information and services, and can receive timely healthcare when they need it.