Education and early pregnancy in Argentina: Implementation of Beijing Declaration commitments at the national level (1995-2020)

• In Event: A new generation: 25 years of efforts for inclusive gender equality in education

Proposal

Adolescent pregnancy is a critical driver of dropout and exclusion among students in Argentina. Although the average early fertility rate has declined by nearly 12 percentage points between 1995 and 2018, early pregnancy is still prevalent, affecting girls' right to education significantly.
Argentina committed to remove all barriers to access formal education for pregnant adolescents and young mothers with the adoption of the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. This commitment includes promoting affordable and accessible childcare facilities and parental education to encourage those who are responsible for the care of children and siblings to return, continue and complete their education. While the country has been working to protect the right to education of pregnant adolescents and young mothers and fathers, much remains to be done to guarantee them full access to education and consequently to fulfil the Beijing Declaration strategic objectives.
The presentation sheds light on trends in the prevalence of early pregnancies since 1995, highlighting who are the most affected girls and how early pregnancy impacts on their education. It then focuses on the concrete steps that have been taken in Argentina to protect pregnant girls' and young parents' learning opportunities. Among measures taken are: legislation and programmes on accessible childcare facilities in schools, flexible learning programmes, subsidies and cash transfers. Prevention programmes are also considered, including reproductive health services and comprehensive sexuality education programmes. Apart from programmatic measures, the presentation discusses other catalysing factors and coalitions that were necessary for the observed changes to happen, such as education policy reforms, global education commitments and external interventions from development partners.
The presentation shows that while there has been progress, pregnant girls and young parents' school access and completion are still challenges, and this is generally due to a lack of full implementation of laws and policies, unavailable childcare services in schools or nearby kindergartens, and prevailing gender norms that continue to place childcare responsibilities on girls and women.

Author

• Constanza Ginestra, UNESCO/Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report