Table 1  Pregnancy experiences by age, Ghana 2002 

Unintended 

Number of 

Number of 

Number of 

Age 

pregnancies 

abortions 

births 

miscarriages 

14 19 49 

21 

26 

2 

20 22 14 

9 

5 

Total 63 

30 

31 

2 

About a third of the participants can be considered migrants to the area; they had lived in 

cities outside of Accra through puberty and early adolescence. Some had experienced their 

unwanted pregnancies in other locales. These were mainly Kwahu, one or more of their parents 

being from or around Bimbong. Most of these girls lived together in a compound with a 

 madam,  a term the participants used to refer to a woman for whom they worked and with 

whom they also usually lived.  

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