Batch Anaerobic Digestion of Banana Plant Residues for Methane Production Determinants of Sexual Debut Among in-school Adolescents in Nyamira County,south-western Kenya

Abstract

Sexual intercourse is commonly initiated during adolescence. When an adolescent begins to have sex, the path taken and the outcome depend on factors that can influence their behavior at each stage, that is, economic, political, religious, biopsychosocial and cultural factors. Adolescent sexuality is a subject of great social concern due to its association with negative outcomes such as teenage pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections. Worldwide, nearly a third of new HIV infections are among adolescents. In Sub-Saharan Africa, the burden is very high with new infections constituting 85% of all adolescents living with HIV. In Kenya in 2017, 23.7% of the new HIV infections were diagnosed among adolescent girls. The national adolescent fertility rate stands at 106 births per 1000 adolescent females, which is more than double the global fertility rate of 44 births per 1000 adolescent females. The teenage pregnancy rate in Nyamira County is quite high standing at 28%. Initiators for sex among adolescents exist both in the school environment and in the broader community. Those in mixed schools continually interact with the opposite sex both in and out of school, while those in single sex schools only interact with the opposite sex during interschool functions and school closures for the holidays. It is therefore important that the determinants of sexual debut among in-school adolescents be understood in order to determine whether the type of school among other factors have a role to play in adolescent students’ sexual debut particularly in the setting of Nyamira County. This will inform the next course of action towards improving adolescent sexual and reproductive health in the County. The Social Learning, Theory of Reasoned Action and the Marxist theories guided the inquiry. The study used surveys, focus group discussions, case narratives and key informant interviews to collect data from adolescents (n=400) and key informants over a six-month period between January and June 2019. Quantitative data was captured and analyzed using SPSS Version 20

statistical software. Similarly, qualitative data was transcribed and analyzed through thematic analysis approach with MAXQDA software Version 2018.2. The study revealed that majority of the students, 61% (244) had ever had sex, with more students (63.5%) in mixed day schools having ever had sex compared to single sex schools (58.5%). However, this was not statistically significant (p=0.19). The students’ gender, age, marital status and coming from polygamous homes were found to be associated with ever having sex (p=0.03). Male students were more likely to have ever had sex compared to female students (p=0.03). Peer pressure was reported by most male students as a driver towards initiating sex, while most female students reported poverty. Older sexual partners were viewed to provide parental love. Most students (75.3%) had normal self-esteem. The level of selfesteem did not vary between students who had ever had sex and those who hadn’t, both in mixed-day secondary school (p=0.809) and in single-sex secondary school students (p=0.089). The study findings imply a high likelihood of a pluralist environment where peer pressure, cultural norming, poverty and popular culture on social and mainstream media all contribute to early sexual debut among in-school adolescents in Nyamira County. Community engagement and participation should be encouraged to ensure that adolescent sex and its consequences are openly discussed, challenges identified and solutions gotten. The Nyamira county government should work with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in the area to come up with adolescent/youth friendly programs that will impart the young people with technical and social skills. Positive peer pressure should be encouraged among boys. Economic growth of families in Nyamira County through job creation by the Nyamira County Government will help curb poverty as a driver towards sexual debut especially among female adolescents. There is also need for future research into interventions that can be put in place to reduce the incidence of sexual initiation among adolescents.