Teenage pregnancy and motherhood are often constructed in contemporary, policy and academic discourses as a social problem or a public health concern, leading to unfavourable socio-economic consequences for both the mother and child. In religious communities, such as those found in Western Area, Sierra Leone, Christian and Muslim values and socio-cultural norms affect the understanding of premarital pregnancy and motherhood. Within these communities, there is a reluctance to openly discuss sexual issues. Despite efforts aimed at regulating young women’s sexual behaviour and discouraging conversations on the subject, religious communities are not exempt from the growing rates of teenage pregnancy.
The presentation will present research based on 11 months of intense ethnographic fieldwork (October 2021- September 2022) in Freetown, Sierra Leone, exploring the life stories and experiences of fourteen pregnant girls and young mothers aged 16-19 from low socio-economic backgrounds. Through semi-structured interviews and participant observation, the study gained socio-cultural perspectives from family members, religious leaders, schoolteachers, health care professionals and other stakeholders. The research engaged with questions related to motherhood, and how young mothers situated themselves within their community, school, church, and other social spaces.
The preliminary analysis revealed the intricate relationship between family values and how young women struggled to adapt to their new reality as mothers, which often led to frictions within family dynamics. Some parents prioritised their daughters' education and return to school after childbirth, while others prioritised the financial demands of raising a new-born, terminating their daughters' educational trajectory to allocate resources towards the infant. Health care workers and religious leaders in turn raised moral questions about sexual agency and autonomy in relation to sexual and reproductive dilemmas regarding abortion practices and contraceptive use.
