The Ministry of Education in Panama referred 300 cases of violence, sexual abuse, and adolescent pregnancies to the nation’s Public Ministry in 2025. These incidents were all detected within the country’s school system, according to official data released this week. The cases highlight a persistent national crisis where adults are frequently implicated.
Verushka Ordás, a psychologist and the national director of Psychoeducational Services for the ministry, confirmed the figures. She explained that the referrals followed psychosocial interventions in more than 415 schools. These situations, she stated, transcend academic issues and reflect deep social problems that directly impact the teaching and learning process.
Ordás detailed the ministry’s protocol for handling such sensitive discoveries. She emphasized the legal and ethical obligation to act when a student’s safety is in question. The process is designed to protect the child above all else.
“When we detect that a pregnant adolescent has been assaulted by an adult, we are obligated to report it. This is not a discretionary decision, but a legal responsibility,” said Verushka Ordás. [Translated from Spanish]
In these scenarios, the designated channel to the Public Ministry is activated immediately. Schools are not required to conduct a prior investigation. A well-founded suspicion is sufficient grounds to file an official complaint, ensuring a swift response to potential danger.
Psychoeducational Teams on the Front Lines
The Ministry of Education deploys 179 psychosocial teams across various educational regions. These teams, consisting of psychologists and social workers, provide preventive and individual care to a student population exceeding 300,000. They do not serve a single school exclusively but rather cover multiple centers within their assigned region.
Their work includes conducting a psychological evaluation, providing social support, and coordinating with parents and teachers. The goal is a holistic approach that addresses the student’s entire environment. Common reasons for referral to these cabinets include low academic performance, behavioral problems, and family conflicts.
Ordás warned that initial consultations often uncover more severe underlying issues. These deeper problems frequently involve intrafamily violence, sexual abuse, and pregnancies resulting from relationships with adults. The ministry plans to install 80 additional teams in 2025 as part of a five-year plan. This expansion aims to surpass 459 psychoeducational cabinets nationwide, focusing on areas that currently lack permanent specialized attention.
A National Crisis of Adolescent Pregnancy
This reporting from schools exists within a broader, alarming national context. In Panama, at least 21 girls and adolescents between the ages of 10 and 19 face pregnancy every single day. These figures come from prenatal control data compiled by the Ministry of Health.
Behind this daily average are stories that reveal the magnitude of a persistent public health problem. The consequences extend far beyond healthcare, affecting the country’s educational, social, and economic sectors. Official statistics confirm that adolescent pregnancy remains a structural issue.
Panama registered 27,953 pregnancies in this age group between 2021 and 2024. The annual average fluctuates between 6,000 and 7,000 cases. A progressive reduction has been recorded compared to previous years. The phenomenon, however, continues to affect thousands of minors and exposes weaknesses in prevention and comprehensive care systems.
In 2024 alone, the number of adolescents in prenatal control reached 5,133. The health ministry’s statistical report does not include data from the Ngäbe Buglé region. This omission suggests the real scale of the problem could be even larger. The lack of information limits the ability to accurately measure the impact in one of the country’s historically most vulnerable areas.
Specific Cases Raise Alarms in Veraguas Province
The most notable cluster of pregnancy cases in 2025 occurred in two educational centers in Veraguas province. Four pregnant students were reported at one school. A separate boarding school in the province reported 14 cases, a number that triggered serious concern among education authorities.
Ordás addressed the boarding school incidents specifically. Public concern had grown after allegations circulated on social media. She clarified that some disseminated information was inaccurate. It created an impression that the situation was a recent, isolated discovery within the current school year.
The reality, according to the director, was more complex. The majority of those 14 cases, she explained, were identified and managed by ministry teams between 2023 and 2024. The protocols for child protection were followed in each instance. The cases were already in the judicial system.
“Our teams acted according to protocol from the moment these situations were detected. The necessary support was provided to the adolescents, and the corresponding reports were made to the authorities to safeguard the integrity of the students,” Ordás stated. [Translated from Spanish]
She confirmed that only one of the 14 cases corresponded to the 2025 school year. That single case was also immediately reported to the Public Ministry. The ministry’s statement aimed to correct the record and detail its established response procedures.
Prevention and a Holistic Educational Approach
Faced with these intertwined challenges, the Ministry of Education (Panama) emphasizes prevention through socioemotional learning. Programs like “School for Parents,” “Between Peers,” and “Leadership” incorporate skill-building for students, teachers, and families. The goal is to prevent risky situations and strengthen responsible decision-making.
The work of the psychoeducational cabinets is fundamental to this mission. They serve as an early warning system within schools. By addressing behavioral and academic concerns, professionals can often uncover and intervene in more serious threats to a child’s wellbeing.
Ordás and her teams operate on a clear principle. The school environment must be a safe space for identification and initial support. Their mandate is to observe, evaluate, and then activate the broader protection network when a child’s rights are violated. The 300 cases referred to prosecutors in 2025 represent 300 instances where that network was engaged.
These referrals are not merely statistics. Each one signifies a profound failure in a child’s safety net. They also represent a critical intervention by the education system. The ministry’s expanding teams suggest a recognition that schools are on the front lines of a national struggle against violence and abuse targeting the young.
Progress is measured in difficult metrics. The reduction in annual adolescent pregnancy figures offers a faint positive trend. The steady flow of cases from schools to prosecutors, however, indicates a problem far from solved. It underscores the urgent need for sustained intervention, accurate data, and a coordinated national response that protects Panama’s students both inside and outside the classroom.