Child marriage is any formal marriage or informal union involving a child under the age of 18. Child marriage, or any marriage without the full and free consent on both ends of the marriage, has received international recognition as a violation of children’s rights. Ending child marriages is essential to protect children from violence, death and other challenges.

The marriage of children occurs all over the world, and the reasons differ from culture to culture. It has roots in gender inequality and the belief that girls and women are inferior to boys and men. Child marriage highly affects girls. About one in every five women aged 20 to 24 get married before their 18th birthday, compared to one in every 30 men. A lack of education, poverty, harmful cultural social norms and practices and insecurity have made the problem worse. Luckily, the UN Initiative is working towards ending child marriages.

How Does Child Marriage Cause Harm?

Twelve million girls marry before the age of 18 every year. That averages out to 23 girls every minute. Girls involved in child marriages are more likely to suffer domestic violence, contract HIV/AIDS and have a higher death rate during pregnancy and childbirth. Child marriages also have negative economic impacts, which can lead to intergenerational cycles of poverty. 

Girls who are at the greatest risk of marrying early often experience isolation from their family, friends and communities. They are typically poor and live in rural areas. 

The UN Initiative and How it is Helping

The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set include global plans for 2030 that aim to protect the environment, tackle poverty and improve lives. UNICEF aims to protect millions of vulnerable girls around the world from child marriage, and hopefully put an end to child marriage by 2030. 

When child marriages do not persist, girls are more likely to reach their full potential. Putting a stop to this practice is vital to achieving gender equality, improving maternal and newborn health and improving economic development. 

According to UNICEF, tackling this issue requires recognizing factors like poverty and poor access to education and health care. Factors like these enable child marriages; however, the reasons for this practice vary from culture to culture. UNICEF’s plan focuses on 12 countries across Africa, Asia and the Middle East where child marriage rates are high. UNICEF reports that 45% of child brides live in South Asia, while 20% are in sub-Saharan Africa. 

The Initiative’s Objective

The initiative’s objective goal is to enlist families, communities, governments and young people to help prevent girls from marrying too young, by empowering girls who are at risk as well as supporting the girls who are already married. The program follows four proven strategies: 

1. Increasing girls’ access to education 
2. Educating communities and parents on the dangers of child marriages
3. Increasing economic support for families
4. Strengthening and enforcing laws that establish the minimum age of marriage as 18 years old

Over the last decade, there has been a global drop in the number of child marriages, showing that ending child marriages is possible. In 2006, one in four women aged 20 to 24 was married as a child, in contrast to today’s number, which has fallen to one in every five women. 

Ending child marriages around the world will not only save many young girls’ lives, but will also help the economy and promote gender equality. 

– Paige Falk
Photo: Flickr