Five Approaches to End the Practice of Child Marriages and Empower Girls

Every girl has the freedom to choose whether, who, and when she marries. Despite this, almost 41,000 girls are coerced into underage marriage every day throughout the world.

Early, forced, and child marriage is all global issues that impact both boys and girls. It does, however, disproportionately impact females — 82 percent of all children married before the age of 18 are girls.

Child marriage deprives girls of their youth by compelling them to drop out of school, exposing them to abuse — sexual, physical, and emotional — and putting them into situations that their young minds and bodies are not prepared for, such as childbirth.

Even though it is illegal, child marriage is nevertheless practiced in many nations across the world, particularly in impoverished areas.

It will not be simple to put an end to this practice, but change is attainable if we all work together. We can alter the story and put a stop to this terrible practice by working together with youth, parents, community leaders, and governments.

Here are five community-based strategies for preventing and ending child marriage:

Educating girls:

Education is vital to keeping girls secure from child marriage. In fact, the longer a girl attends school, the less likely she is to marry before the age of 18 and have children during her adolescence.

Furthermore, education helps females gain the skills and information necessary to obtain jobs and support their families. This can help break the cycle of poverty and avoid child marriages caused by extreme poverty.

Empowering girls:

Every girl has the right to choose her destiny, but not every girl is aware of this — which is why empowering girls is critical to stopping child marriage.

When girls feel secure in their skills, are aware of their rights, and are encouraged by social circles of other empowered girls, they can stand up and say “NO” to injustices such as child marriage.

Empowered females may reshape attitudes and challenge social standards about what it signifies to be a girl.

Appealing to the larger community to stand up for girls’ rights:

Parents and community leaders are frequently in charge of determining when and with whom a girl marries. Marriage, it is considered, keeps females secure, protected, and monetarily provided for by their husbands in many traditional societies.

Marriage, on the other hand, endangers girls’ physical and emotional health. Females who marry before the age of 18 are more likely to endure domestic violence and to report having had their first sexual encounter under duress. Furthermore, child brides are more vulnerable to HIV infection and are more likely to die during pregnancy and delivery. When parents and community leaders are taught about the numerous harmful repercussions of child marriage, it can drive them to alter their minds, advocate for girls’ rights, and urge others to do the same.

Providing income opportunities for girls and their families

Providing families with income-generating possibilities, such as microfinance loans, is an excellent strategy to avoid child marriages caused by financialnecessity.

When families have more economic prospects, their girls are less likely to be perceived as a financial burden. This is especially true if a girl is attending school and learning vital skills that will help her earn money in the future.

Encouraging supportive laws and petitioning the government

In nations where child marriage is common, lobbying the government to raise the minimum marriage age to 18 years is an important first step toward positive change. India has gone one step farther than the other countries by raising the legal marriage age for females from 18 to 21 years, giving them an opportunity for growth.

After the minimum age is raised, it is critical to continue promoting awareness of these rules among government officials and community leaders to guarantee that the laws are implemented.

Other legal procedures, such as recording birth certificates and weddings, are effective preventative measures.