KIGALI, Rwanda – As Rwanda grapples with mounting regional tensions, another crisis continues to unfold within its borders – one that affects the nation’s future generations.

The rising rate of teenage pregnancy remains a pressing issue, exacerbated by the lack of comprehensive reproductive education.

During a study abroad trip to Rwanda in June, I met Kevine Cynthia Umurerwa, a teen mother who did not have the benefit of extensive sex education in school. Umurerwa, who lives with her mother and young daughter, Gift Alia, got pregnant at 15. When she informed the child’s father of the pregnancy, he left her, and she hasn’t heard from him since.

“I learned some things about it in Primary Six, but only the basics,” Umurerwa said of school-based sex education. “Now I know a lot since I gave birth, but before, I didn’t know much.”

Umurerwa now faces the challenge of raising a child as a single mother amid stigma and judgment. She said her community and church labeled her as irresponsible. Every day, she tries to change people’s opinion about her by being a good mother.

Her experience reflects a larger issue in Rwanda, where teenage pregnancy rates have steadily climbed. According to the National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda, teenage pregnancies increased from 17,000 cases in 2017 to more than 23,000 in 2019.

The Rwandan government, with assistance from international organizations such as the U.S. Agency for International Development, has worked to combat the crisis through education and reproductive health initiatives. Future funding could be in jeopardy, as President Donald Trump has called for eliminating USAID. A lawsuit has put that order on hold.