Government has been dragged to court over a move by parliament to ban comprehensive sexual education from schools. Center for Health, Human Rights and Development (Cehurd) , a non-governmental organization has sued government for the delay to draft a policy on comprehensive sexuality education in primary schools.

Last year parliament passed a resolution banning teaching of sex education or dissemination of training materials in schools. While banning comprehensive sexuality education in schools, parliament observed that sexuality education contradicts the local customs, aspirations, values, practices and behaviours.

As a result of the ban, the Education and Sports ministry embarked on developing a new policy on sexual education in August last year. But to date, the policy hasn’t been made public. 

Students demonstrate how to use a female condom

Joy Asasira, the program manager, research and advocacy officer at Cehurd , states that the delay by the ministry to put in place a new sexuality education policy, has jeopardized the realization of the right to education and access to information contrary to the Constitution and Education (pre-primary and post-primary) Act, 2008.
 
Asasira adds that access to information and sexuality interventions are issues of urgency because any time lost may mean a wrong choice of action taken by a child or youth leading to ill health and death.

“Comprehensive sexuality education is vital in providing information to young people for their transition to adulthood as it equips them with knowledge, skills and values to make responsible choices and to avoid sexual reproductive ill health…” Asasira states in her affidavit

Adding: “The banning of sexuality education and its delay to put in place a new policy, creates a gap and is a threat to social development of the country as it bans all good practices in both formal and informal settings that include senior woman in schools teaching children how to manage menstrual hygiene and generally preparing them for future and parenthood.”

She also contends that the open ban imposed on sexuality education defeats the other government policies being implemented like the national strategy to end child marriage and teenage pregnancy and prevention of HIV/Aids.

The NGO now wants the High court to prevail over government to issue a new policy on comprehensive sexuality education immediately.

They also want parliament to revoke its open ban on sexuality education in schools because the Constitution protects the right of children to access age appropriate information.  Court is yet to sermon government to respond to the suit.