13-year-old girl gives birth during primary leaving exams

A 13-year-old Primary Seven candidate in Mpigi District, Uganda, has given birth to a baby boy during a Mathematics examination.

The incident happened at St Balikuddembe Primary School, Jalamba Ward in Buwama Town Council, Mpigi District.

The girl, according to Mr Godfrey Ssemanda, the head teacher of the school, developed labour pains during a Mathematics examination.

“After 20 minutes, she alerted the invigilator who called colleagues and rushed the girl to a nearby medical centre,” Mr Ssemanda said.

Ms Goreth Mirembe, the nurse at the clinic said that after helping the girl to deliver, she was taken back to the school to complete her paper in an isolated environment.

Mr Ssemanda said that the invigilator gave the girl extra 45 minutes to write the examination.

Speaking to Daily Monitor, the girl’s parents attributed their daughter’s pregnancy to last year’s Covid-19 lockdown.

She was lured into conjugal acts during this Covid-19 lockdown by a certain boy because they were not going to school,” one of the parents said.