Is an end to child marriage within reach?

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By Webdesk


A bride during a mass wedding ceremony in Karachi.  — AFP/File
A bride during a mass wedding ceremony in Karachi. — AFP/File

Despite a steady decline in child marriage over the past decade, multiple crises, including conflict, climate shock and the lingering fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, threaten to undo hard-earned gains, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned. ).

In the latest report — Is an end to child marriage within reach? Latest trends and future prospects – UNICEF said one in five young women aged 20 to 24 was married as a child, up from nearly one in four a decade ago.

“The world is engulfed in crises on top of crises that destroy the hopes and dreams of vulnerable children, especially girls who should be students, not brides,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell in a statement.

“Health and economic crises, escalating armed conflicts and the devastating effects of climate change are forcing families to seek a false sense of refuge in child marriage. We must do everything in our power to ensure that their rights to education and an empowered life are secured,” she added.

Girls who marry in their youth have immediate and lifelong consequences. They are less likely to stay in school and are at increased risk of early pregnancy, which in turn increases the risk of complications and death in children and mothers, UNICEF notes.

The practice can also isolate girls from family and friends, excluding them from participation in their community, taking a heavy toll on their mental health and well-being.

The report cites global progress, mainly driven by a decline in India, although this country is still home to the highest number of child brides in the world.

Progress is also visible in other contexts, including in densely populated countries where the practice is traditionally common, such as Bangladesh and Ethiopia, as well as in smaller countries with fewer child marriages moving closer to elimination, such as the Maldives and Rwanda, the analysis says .

The experiences of these countries illustrate that progress is possible in different environments, according to UNICEF.

Yet they tend to share common themes, including improvements in economic development, poverty alleviation, access to employment, and high school level education.

Here are the key facts about child marriage in South Asia:

  • About one in four young women in South Asia was first married or engaged before their 18th birthday;
  • Child brides in South Asia are more likely to live in poor households, have less education and live in rural areas;
  • Three out of four child brides in the region give birth as an adolescent;
  • The vast majority of child brides in South Asia are out of school, and
  • South Asia is a global leader in reducing child marriage.

Globally, conflict, climate-related disasters and the lingering impacts of COVID-19 – particularly rising poverty, income shocks and school dropouts – are helping to increase the causes of child marriage, while also making it difficult for girls to access healthcare, education, social services and community support protecting them from child marriage, the report said.

As a result, girls living in vulnerable environments are twice as likely to become child brides as the average girl worldwide, it notes.

For every tenfold increase in conflict-related deaths, there is a seven percent increase in child marriage. At the same time, extreme weather events due to climate change increase girls’ risk, with every 10 percent deviation in rainfall associated with an approximately 1 percent increase in the prevalence of child marriage.

Precious gains to end child marriage over the past decade are also threatened by the lingering impacts of COVID-19, the analysis warns. It is estimated that the pandemic has already reduced by a quarter the number of child marriages that could have been prevented since 2020.

“We have proven that progress in ending child marriage is possible. It requires unwavering support for vulnerable girls and families,” added Ms. Russell. “We need to focus on keeping girls in school and making sure they have economic opportunities.”


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