One in three school-going adolescents in the country reported being bullied on school property while almost one in five experienced cyberbullying.
The country’s latest national adolescent health survey paints a picture of pupils facing violence both inside and outside the school environment.
It found that 33.2% of learners aged 13 to 17 had been bullied on school property during the month preceding the survey. Girls were slightly more affected, with 35.1% reporting that they had been bullied compared with 31.3% of boys.
The findings also show that bullying is no longer confined to the school grounds.
A further 17.3% of learners reported being cyberbullied, with girls again recording a higher prevalence at 18.1% compared with 16.3% among boys. Cyberbullying also increased with age, rising from 16.5% among learners aged 13 to 15 to 18.6% among those aged 16 to 17.
The survey does not establish which digital platforms were involved, who was responsible for the harassment or what form the cyberbullying took. It also does not establish whether learners who experienced bullying at school were the same learners who reported cyberbullying. However, the findings point to an increasingly complex environment in which harassment can extend beyond the school gates and continue through phones and digital platforms after learners have left school.
The wider findings indicate that bullying forms part of a broader concern around violence and injury among adolescents.
Almost six in every 10 learners, which is 59.4% reported suffering a serious injury at least once during the 12 months preceding the survey. Boys recorded a significantly higher prevalence, with 65.2% reporting serious injuries compared with 54.5% of girls. Physical fighting was also reported by 29.9% of learners during the previous 12 months. The gender difference was again pronounced, with 38.1% of boys reporting involvement in a physical fight compared with 22.8% of girls.
The injury figures represent a substantial increase from the previous national survey. In 2013, 38.6% of learners reported suffering a serious injury. By 2025, the figure had risen to 59.4%. Physical fighting also increased over the same period, from 18.9% in 2013 to 29.9% in 2025.
The survey further found that 5.3% of learners said their most serious injury had resulted from a motor vehicle accident. While the survey establishes the scale of injuries, it does not provide enough information to determine whether the increase was mainly driven by accidents, violence, transport incidents, sports or other circumstances.
The findings on bullying also raise concerns about the environment in which learners are expected to learn and develop. Only 29.4% of learners said most pupils at their school were generally kind and helpful. This suggests that, alongside measures targeting violence and bullying, schools may need to strengthen peer support and school connectedness.
The Ministry of Health has recommended strengthening anti-bullying policies to address both physical and cyberbullying.
It further recommends training school staff to identify and support survivors as well as learners displaying aggressive behaviour. The ministry also proposes stronger systems for identifying learners who may be experiencing bullying and linking them with appropriate support.
