By Sadique Bamwita
KAMPALA
The Commissioner for Children and Youth Affairs at the Ministry of Gender, Labor and Social Development, Mondo Kyateka, has called for concerted efforts to combat the Skyrocketing Teenage Pregnancies in the country.
He made the remarks in Kampala on April 29, 2026, while launching the 2026 National Girl Champions awards slated for October this year.
Mondo said to address spiking number of teenage pregnancies, his ministry has embarked on human capital development by investing massively in the Girl-child .On this note, he reaffirmed government’s commitment to empowering the Girl-child in Uganda.
Mondo said the upcoming 2026 National Girl Champions awards comes at a critical time when there is need to empower the Girl-child , revealing that in the Last five years the awards have registered tremendous impact in the country.
“The initiative has gained nationwide recognition and has grown into a powerful platform, ‘ Mondo commended the National Girl Champions awards.
On disability, Mondo said disability is not inability reaffirming government’s commitment to promoting an inclusive environment regardless of where one comes from adding that this initiative continue to grow from strength to strength.
Mondo further noted that some of the bottlenecks to promoting inclusivity include, extreme poverty, limited access to quality education, early marriages (34%), teenage pregnancy and Gender Based Violence among other things. He, however says these challenges continue to hinder productivity of girls in the country.
Mondo further said his ministry continues to advocate for policies and programs aimed at addressing the said challenges through strengthening Child protection system and promoting Girl -child education among other measures.
“No Girl-child should think about any impediment and their voices must be heard. We shall ensure every girl lives to full potential. And I call upon development partners to come on board to support initiatives aimed empowering the Girl-child,” Mondo appealed.
The programs officer at Kaleke Kasome agency, Moris Haris, called for amplification of voices of girls arguing that every girl has the potential to lead and inspire her community. He added that his agency is committed to investing in the Girl-child by breaking barriers that hamper the Girl-child.
Noeline Gift Achom, who represents females with disabilities on Makerere Guide Council, challenged those who discriminate her fellow disabled people, reminding them that disability is not inability.
“Our abilities are greater than our barriers,” Achom assured the general public.
