A 12-year-old girl is among South Africa's youngest mothers as the country welcomed babies born on the first day of the new year across various hospitals on Wednesday.
Gauteng welcomed 13 New Year's Day babies with the first being born at midnight.
On Wednesday, Gauteng MEC for health and wellness, Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko, joined mothers at Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital to celebrate the birth of their newborns.
Eastern Cape MEC of health Ntandokazi Capa said they welcomed 40 babies, including one delivered by a 12-year-old, with the father allegedly 17.
Capa said the department will follow up on the issue.
Meanwhile, KwaZulu-Natal's youngest mothers of New Year babies were four 16-year-old girls.
KZN health MEC Nomagugu Simelane said one of them gave birth at Charles Johnson Memorial Hospital in Nquthu and she was impregnated by a 22-year-old man.
The other three delivered their babies at Harry Gwala Regional Hospital.
Simelane said their babies were fathered by a 16-year-old boy, a 20-year-old man and a 21-year-old man, respectively.
She said the province also has two 17-year-olds and four 18-year-olds who’ve given birth.
“While the ages of the fathers of these babies is not known, we do know that one of the 17-year-olds, who gave birth at Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Hospital, was impregnated by a 26-year-old man,” Simelane said.
Simelane said they are alarmed by the revelations, especially when considering the girls' ages when they were impregnated.
“We are worried because when children or young girls fall pregnant, their lives are never the same. Conceiving at an early age poses significant health risks for the young mother and her unborn baby,” she said
The province welcomed 117 New Year babies — 73 girls and 44 boys. .
According to Simelane, the first New Year’s baby was a boy who was delivered at Hlabisa Hospital at five minutes past midnight, followed by another boy, at seven minutes past midnight.
“These babies have a birth weight of 3.2kg and 2.7kg, and their mothers are aged 27 and 29 respectively,” she said.
Simelane said Hlabisa Hospital had a total of five New Year's babies, which makes it one of their busiest maternity wards since midnight.
“Here at Prince Mshiyeni Memorial Hospital, we have had four New Year babies so far, made up of three girls and one boy. St Mary’s Hospital, in Mariannhill, has welcomed seven New Year babies so far. It is followed by Harry Gwala Regional Hospital (formerly known as Edendale), with six New Year babies, and Newcastle Hospital, with five New Year babies,” Simelane said.
She said while they were celebrating the new lives, the number of babies born to teenage mothers cannot be ignored.
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