The harsh statistic that hurts more than a Sunday without coffee
Make yourself comfortable, the numbers we are going to review are ones that make you hungry more than seeing an Instagram story of someone who is on vacation. It turns out that, in the great 2024, Mexico recorded a figure that seems taken from a historical drama, but is our harshest news: 92,660 births in teenagers who should be deciding between TikTok or Reels, not between diapers or bottles. And if that was not enough to ruin our day, we must add another almost 8 thousand births in girls between 10 and 14 years old. Translation for those who don’t want to do math on a Monday: every 24 hours, 21 girls under 15 years old, who are not even allowed to watch B15 rated movies, became mothers. Yes, you read that right. Twenty-one. Diary. A figure worthy of an epidemiological report of dystopia, courtesy of the Secretary of Health.
But wait, things get murkier than the Netflix algorithm. The estimates from the National Population Council reveal another fact that leaves us speechless: in 2023, the trophy for the most common parent (an overwhelming 42%) was won by young people in the age range of 15 to 19 years. They are followed, very far away, by the groups of 20 to 24 years old (15.2%), 25 to 29 (4%) and, closing the podium, those over 30 years old with 2.8%. When the birth numbers refer to girls, the conversation takes a radical turn. There is no place here for euphemisms or the phrase “kids’ things.” In these cases, talking about consensual relationships is as absurd as pretending that morning traffic is a Zen experience. It is the most painful evidence of an extreme violation.
A problem with first name, last name and hashtag
The National Protection System for Girls, Boys and Adolescents, also known as Sipinna (because institutions love an acronym), was clear and forceful: pregnancy in girls and adolescents is not an unfortunate “accident.” It is a thousand-headed monster, a multifactorial problem that serves as an amplifier of misery. It exacerbates inequality and, to top it all off, perpetuates the cycles of violence that many of these girls were already suffering in silence. Basically, it is adding gasoline to a fire that was already consuming their lives.
This phenomenon is not exclusive to a forgotten corner of the map. It spreads throughout the national territory like a bad meme, but with devastating consequences. However, it has its favorites: girls and adolescents in a situation of greater poverty and with access to education that ranges from low to non-existent, are the ones who carry the worst cards. For them, the risk of facing early motherhood is not a possibility, it is a latent and constant threat. It’s the lottery that no one wants to win.
Faced with this panorama that seems to come out of ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’, the authorities assure that they are not crossing their arms. They say they are fully involved in the execution of the 3rd Phase of the National Strategy to Prevent Pregnancy in Adolescents (ENAPEA, another acronym for the collection). And as if it were a superhero mission, they also coordinate the newly installed “Zero Girls Mothers” working group. The objective of this initiative sounds like an almost utopian dream, but necessary: to achieve the goal that no girl between 9 and 14 years old will be a mother. Zero. Nothing. No please.
The strategy goes beyond handing out leaflets. “Together, we promote actions to prevent sexual violence against girls and adolescents, identified as the main cause of pregnancy and early motherhood,” they explained in a statement that, hopefully, is being read on all desks in the country. It’s not just about “taking care of yourself”, it’s about eradicating the violence that causes this drama.
And here comes the cry to heaven, the call that sounds more urgent than the reminder to update the apps. Sipinna made a strong call to authorities at all levels of government, civil society organizations, academia, international organizations and, very importantly, all caregivers. The slogan is clear: join the urgent action. This is not an issue of a single agency, it is a problem that damages the integrity of children and adolescents throughout the country, and that requires coordination of all actors and intelligent articulation of available resources. It is an alarm that we cannot silence.
Sipinna’s final message is a reminder of what is at stake, a declaration of principles that should be our collective mantra: “We want all girls, boys and adolescents to have a life free of violence, to be able to stay in school, to develop, grow and live in better conditions of well-being. We want Girls, Not Mothers!” A phrase that sums up everything: childhood is to be lived, not sacrificed.
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