Reduced opportunities will force 110 million girls into child marriage between now and 2035
Ahead of International Day of the Girl, a report released last week by international aid agency, World Vision, calls for urgent action for the sake of the 110 million girls who will be forced into child marriage by 2035.
The report, ‘Fighting for a Future’, tracks girls’ opportunities in 40 low- and middle-income countries, including Malawi which is among the 20 with the highest rates of child marriage. It predicts that 52% of girls in countries with the lowest opportunity levels will be forced into child marriage.
Dana Buzducea, World Vision’s Partnership Leader for Advocacy and External Engagement said: “Every year, approximately 12 million girls are married before they reach the age of 18, and placed at high risk of sexual abuse, domestic violence, depression, and arrested education. This study compares 40 countries and shows the strong correlation between the opportunities (economic, educational, political) and the agency a girl has in her community and society and her risk of becoming a child-bride.”
“World Vision believes the world has both the knowledge and the resources to break this vicious circle, ensuring that every girl, no matter where she is born is protected from the violence that is child marriage, is able to make choices, build the life she wants, and achieve her full potential. What we need is the political will to use them.”
The report reveals stark disparities, even between cooperating countries. A girl born in South Africa, with a child marriage rate of 4%, will have more opportunity than if she were born in Malawi, with a child marriage rate of 42%.
A 2017 constitutional amendment raised the legal marriage age to 18 for both boys and girls in Malawi. Even so, a 2019 report from UNICEF and World Vision Malawi’s Child Rights Barometer said a majority of girls are married before 18. Poverty and lack of opportunities are the main factors behind these child marriages.
With COVID-19 eroding gains made in the past, child marriages spiked during the pandemic in Malawi. School closures and worsened poverty were cited among the driving factors.
Charles Gwengwe, World Vision Malawi’s Advocacy and Communications Director says, “There is no reason for our girls to be forced into marriage every year.
Building on the report, World Vision in Malawi calls on the government and donors to expand opportunities for girls, including empowering them, ensuring access to education, and prioritising inclusive economic development.
The report found that education was the single biggest indicator of a girls’ opportunity and of her reduced risk of child marriage. A child that lives within a country with the lowest education opportunities is 60% more likely to be a child bride, compared to a child that lives in a country with the highest level of educational opportunities.
Andrew Morley, World Vision International President & CEO, said: “Child marriage robs girls of their God-given potential in an instant, forcing them into a life of heart-breaking abuse and violence. Our staff are on the frontline right across the world empowering and protecting children, teaching them their rights, and ensuring they stay in school. I have seen for myself how equipping children themselves to change community attitudes is so successful.”
“Yet much of this abuse continues in the shadows, and we need more support to tackle this injustice. We owe it to all girls everywhere to ensure they enjoy their childhoods free from abuse, are educated, and have equal opportunities to excel no matter where in the world they are born.”
ENDS
Report available to download here: https://www.wvi.org/publications/policy-report/it-takes-world/fighting-future-girls-opportunities
World Vision is a Christian humanitarian and development organisation dedicated to working with children, families and their communities to reach their full potential by tackling the root causes of poverty and injustice.
World Vision serves all people, regardless of religion, race, ethnicity or gender. For more information, please visit www.wvi.org or follow us on Twitter: @WorldVisionMalawi and Facebook: @World Vision Malawi.
For more information, please contact World Vision Malawi’s Communications and External Engagement Manager: Charles_Kabena@wvi.org