South Africans Worried That 7,627 Teenagers Fell Pregnant in Durban in 2024 and 2025

• Almost 8,000 teenagers between the ages of 10 and 14 fell pregnant in Ethekwini, KwaZulu-Natal, between April 2024 and April 2025
• Hundreds of the girls allegedly had legal and illegal abortions during the same period in the province
• South Africans were distraught, and one blamed religious practices for the high number of teenage pregnancies in the province

Tebogo Mokwena, a dedicated Briefly News current affairs journalist, contributed coverage of international and local social issues like health, corruption, education, unemployment, labour, service delivery protests and immigration in South Africa during his seven years at Daily Sun and Vutivi Business News.

ETHEKWINI, KWAZULU-NATAL—Between April 2024 and April 2025, almost 8,000 teenagers living in Ethekwini in KwaZulu-Natal became pregnant. Most were between the ages of 10 and 14.

Over 7,000 teenagers pregnant in KZN

Accordingf to eNCA, a high number of these children, who have been victims of statutory rape, have had legal and illegal abortions. Gynaecologist Dr Mpume Zenda said that children below the age of 16 need the assistance of parents or guardians to give consent for abortions.

Zenda said that young girls are having periods at a much earlier stage, which means that they can fall pregnant. She said, however, that a 10-year-old cannot consent to have sex. She called on parents and guardians to have conversations about sex with their children.

Teenagers falling pregnant

According to the Bhekisisa Centre for Health Journalism, one in seven moms in South Africa is a teenager. Almost 365 teenage girls between the ages of 10 and 15 gave birth daily in the 2022/23 financial year. Data from the Human Sciences Research Council also showed that mothers between the ages of 15 and 24 are HIV-positive.

Teenage pregnancy in South Africa

• Gender-based violence activist Vanessa Govender said that thelaw mustbe ruthless in apprehending statutory rape suspects after 4,000 girls gave birth in the Eastern Cape in 2024
• Over 80 teenagers were among the 1,448 women who gave birth in the country in New Year's in 2025, and the youngest was a 12-year-old girl
• The Eastern Cape's Social Development MEC, Nukiwe Fanta, called for action to be taken against the 17-year-old boy who impregnated the 12-year-old

Spoth Africans weigh in

Netizens commenting on eNCA's X tweet were worried.

Nkosi Radachild said:

"You can imagine the HIV that comes with it."

G-Monsta said:

"This is a serious problem. 10-14 year-olds having babies. This is crazy!"

Transporter said:

"The county is in turmoil when it comes to unemployment, and here we have kids having kids."

Gumgedle said:

"They must check how many of them attend Shembe Church. That church is abusing kids."

In a Nutshell said:

"This isn't teenage curiosity. This is a national crisis. Someone needs to be held accountable. These numbers aren't just statistics. Their lives are being derailed before they've even started."

DA calls on government to act on high teenage pregnancy rate

In a similar article, Briefly News reported that the Democratic Alliance was alarmed at the country's teenage pregnancy rate. It called for those who commit statutory rape to be given lengthy sentences.

The World Health Organisation revealed that one in four teenagers in the country fell pregnant in 2024. It also showed that 2,716 children between 10 and 14 gave birth.

Source: Briefly News