Kristine Blokhus, Country Representative, United Nations Population Fund, addressing MPs during the Induction SeminarBy Prisca WanyenyaThe United Nations Population Fund has warned Parliament of the high teenage pregnancies in Uganda, revealing that approximately, 1000 girls get pregnant every day, a plight that is costing Uganda’s economy US$182 million (UGX665.210Bn).The warning was issued by Kristine Blokhus, Country Representative, United Nations Population Fund while addressing MPs during the Induction Seminar for Members of the 12th Parliament of Uganda at Commonwealth Speke Resort Munyonyo, on 3rd July 2026.She noted that the cost highlighted is only tagged to the health sector, not the lost income or dreams.“So currently, one in four Ugandan girls becomes pregnant before she is 18years old, that is approximately 1,000 girls every day. Every time a girl leaves school because of an unintended pregnancy, she is effectively written out of the formal economy. She is unlikely to enter the money economy at all, or at least in any meaningful way, and she is unlikely to be a taxpayer, she is unlikely to save, she is unlikely to invest, she is unlikely to become an entrepreneur,” Blokhus explained.On the impact teenage pregnancy is having on Uganda’s economy, Blokhus explained, “So that is a quarter of the female labour force that is lost every year, and if we are to achieve that upper middle-income status, we cannot afford to lose anyone. So, this requires attention. Teenage pregnancy costs this economy US$182Million (UGX665.210Bn) every year, that is health care cost only. It is not the cost of lost incomes, it is not the cost of lost dreams and aspirations or anything theoretical, it’s just the health care cost of thoseteenagers and their health care costs.”Blokhus, who was making a presentation on- Uganda’s Population Structure: Opportunities and Challenges, informed Parliament that whereas Uganda’s bigger population can be good, it is not necessarily better and more productive and it is not necessarily a bigger market.“A population that is growing fast because of teenage pregnancy is not a market for low-income, creative investment ideas, it is not a market where people have hopes and dreams and aspirations and have the health care and education to pursue those dreams,” she explained.MPs listening to Kristine Blokhus, Country Representative, United Nations Population FundAccording to UNDP, the only avenue through which Uganda can benefit from its huge growing population is through investment in education, if Uganda is to achieve the demographic dividend, adding that although Uganda has achieved gender parity in primary education, which is a big achievement this is being hindered by the high rates of teenage pregnancy which remains a major reason why girls drop out of school and secondary school.She argued, “So, keeping girls in school, keeping boys in school and keeping girls in school, but it’s the girls who are dropping out because of teenage pregnancy primarily and so this is one of the most impactful interventions if we want to achieve the demographic dividend. And this is why at UNFPA we always say that we plan from the perspective of the 10-year-old girl. What is the environment, the policies, the investments that she needs in order to reach her potential? And when we talk about the potential of the girl, what we are really talking about is the potential of the nation.”Although UNFP applauded Uganda for reducing the mortality rate by making it 44% more safe to produce in Uganda compared to 10years back, which gains represent thousands of families that have kept their mother, the body however warned of the fragility towards these numbers prompting calls for sustained investment, if these achievements are to be maintained and further improved.Blokhus made a number of proposals that Parliament can consider in order to improve the quality of Uganda’s population including the need to invest in Uganda’s health systems by sustaining and extending the gains in maternal and child mortality and ensuring access to reproductive health services.She also proposed investment in girls’ education and retention by keeping them in school at whatever cost, deeming such a move as the most impactful thing Uganda can do, and further proposed ensuringdecent employment wherein, the formal economy has to be able to absorb all of these young people.“A big youth population where the young people are uneducated, unemployed, and unhappy doesn’t lead anywhere good, we want them to be working, we want them to be healthy, we want them to be educated. That floating middle class that I talked about, those people that have become middle class but risk falling back into poverty, protect that because we need a stable middle class. I can have the final slide please,” added Blokhus.Although UNFP noted that the growth of Uganda’s population isn’t bad, the body however asked Legislators to ask questions regarding the quality of population growth as the decisions MPs make will determine whether Uganda in 2040 is simply a country with more people or whether it is a country where those people are more prosperous, more equitable and more stable.The post 1,000 Girls Get Pregnant Every Day As Uganda’s Economy Loses UGX665bn appeared first on Business Focus.