Bash-Taqi Regina, Watson Katherine, Akwara Elsie, Adebayo Emmanuel, Chandra-Mouli Venkatraman
Director, Institute for Development (IfD), Freetown, Sierra Leone.
Freelance Consultant, Singapore.
Sex Reprod Health Matters. 2020 Dec;28(1):1818376. doi: 10.1080/26410397.2020.1818376.
This study provides insight into the extent to which public commitment to reduce teenage pregnancy made by the President of Sierra Leone made the issue a political priority and the factors that facilitated and hindered this. Using historical observations from government and civil society actors who were involved in the formulation and implementation of the country's National Strategy for the Reduction of Teenage Pregnancy (NSRTP), the study presents lessons learnt, with a particular focus on advocacy. It does not examine the extent to which the NSRTP was operationalised and its objectives fulfilled. Findings indicate that the availability of locally relevant data as well as advocacy from international and national NGOs were factors that led to the President's commitment and the development of a national strategy. Whilst continued verbal support from political leaders and administrative mechanisms for implementation assured that teenage pregnancy reduction stayed on the political agenda, the scarcity of resources as well as the necessary diversion of efforts and resources to the Ebola epidemic impeded implementation. Overall, the findings demonstrate that public commitments made by political leaders - starting with President Ernest Bai Koroma's public declaration in 2012 - kick-started efforts to reduce teenage pregnancy in Sierra Leone; and that despite inadequate human and financial resources for the implementation of the NSRTP, actions taken by both the government and partners over time have contributed to tangible progress.
本研究深入探讨了塞拉利昂总统做出的减少青少年怀孕的公开承诺在多大程度上使该问题成为政治优先事项，以及促成和阻碍这一情况的因素。该研究利用参与该国《减少青少年怀孕国家战略》（NSRTP）制定和实施的政府及民间社会行为体的历史观察结果，介绍了所吸取的经验教训，尤其侧重于宣传倡导方面。它并未考察NSRTP的实施程度及其目标的实现情况。研究结果表明，本地相关数据的可得性以及国际和国内非政府组织的宣传倡导是促使总统做出承诺并制定国家战略的因素。虽然政治领导人持续的口头支持以及实施的行政机制确保了减少青少年怀孕问题始终位列政治议程，但资源匮乏以及为应对埃博拉疫情而对精力和资源的必要转移阻碍了实施工作。总体而言，研究结果表明，政治领导人做出的公开承诺——始于欧内斯特·巴伊·科罗马总统在2012年的公开声明——开启了塞拉利昂减少青少年怀孕的工作；并且尽管实施NSRTP的人力和财力资源不足，但政府和合作伙伴长期采取的行动已促成了切实进展。
