By SARAH MWANZA –

CHIBOMBO District Commissioner Felix Mang’wato has attributed the increased teenage pregnancies and early marriages in the area to the lack of boarding space at secondary schools.
Mr Mang’wato said the district had only three boarding schools and could not accommodate all the pupils who passed to Grade Eight, hence forcing many to look for accommodation in nearby villages away from their respective homes.
He said pupils renting in nearby villages were usually exploited by order men in the villages as they lived alone without supervision of their parents and guardians and ended up becoming pregnant and some resorted to getting married.
He identified the three schools as Moomba Boarding School in Katuba, Chibombo and Kafunshi boarding schools both in Kembe Constituency.
MMD Kembe Member of Parliament (MP) Ronnie Shikapwasha appealed to Government to consider building secondary schools in all the three chiefdoms.
Central Province Minister Davies Chisopa said Government was already upgrading some of the primary schools into secondary schools in an effort to reduce the pressure on the three boarding schools in the area.
Mr Chisopa said Government released K904, 000 to upgrade two primary schools into day secondary schools in Chibombo early this year.
“Government has released K452, 000 for the upgrade of Chinyongola Primary School in Chief Liteta’s area and Chiyuni Primary School in Chief Chitanda’s area and the two schools are expected to be completed in December this year,” he said.