Rio, 12/19/2003 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - The number of girls below the age of 20 who become mothers is on the rise in Brazil's poorer regions, reports the government statistical bureau (Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE).

According to the IBGE report, there was an increase of 25% in young mothers in the North region between 1991 and 2001. In the Northeast and Central-West, the increase was 23%. The increase was general: in states it varied from a high of 27.8% in Tocantins to 17.5% in the Federal District. (AB)