Sexual practices among western Kenyan youth
Year: 2011
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Universally the importance of proper sex behaviors and development amongst youngsters is well recognized and documented. Nations and communities are committed to detecting early sexual misbehaviors, amongst others in growing children, in order to foster sound societies. Concomitantly, some of the so-called “remote areas”, which are far from the political centers, seem to have less attention from the national resources. In practice, most of the social problems are detected in these “remote areas”. In this context, a survey questionnaire was conducted among 217 randomly selected school-age children in 15 sub-locations in Kisamu, in western Kenya. The main goals were to create awareness among school-going children regarding safe sex and sexually transmitted diseases and to explore the existing sexual behaviors in the research area. Statistical analysis on the research question revealed that primary school children begin their first sexual activity at as early as six years while older secondary school pupils start at around the age of eight and half. Out-ofschool children indicated that they started their first sexual activities at the age of 10. Similarly, when asked about the frequency of sexual engagement in the year before, the frequency was higher among schoolchildren than those out of school. These findings raised a serious fundamental question on the effectiveness of the existing child protection policies in schools in the research areas. Therefore, all stakeholders should review school protection mechanisms where special care could be given to primary schools, where the impact is most serious.
Author: AA Egal
Institution: Vaal University of Technology
Language: English
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2559890427