There are several issues affecting young women which include stigma and discrimination, early marriage, gender norms and peer pressure.
STIGMA AND DISCRIMINATION
-Is when people have a bad attitude or feeling towards someone because of something they know about that person like being a single mother or living with HIV or belonging to a particular religious group.
-When stigma is adopted, this may take the form of either an action or a failure to act, for example not wanting someone to be on their team because they have or are thought to be HIV positive.
EARLY MARRIAGE
-Early marriage destroys society especially for girls. If you marry before the age of 18, you are 50% more likely to drop out of school. For girls, this means that you will then become a housewife.
-Teenage pregnancies can lead to death during birth or after birth, it can also destroy their health and can lead to pregnancy termination.
CULTURE AND GENDER
-Refers to the characteristics of women, men, girls and boys that are socially constructed.
-This includes norms, behaviours and roles associated with being a woman, man, girl or boy as well as relationships with each other.
PEER PRESSURE
-It negatively influences women’s rights to education, healthcare and protection. A girl who is married as a child is more likely to be out of school and not earn money and contribute to the community. These consequences impact not just the girls directly but also her family and community. Young girls are the most pressured into engaging in sexual activities at a young age.
Story by Andile Tshuma