Empowering young people takes different forms including reaching out to them directly and sharing messages of Hope and encouragement: Child marriage is deeply rooted in gender inequality and violates girls’ rights to health, education and well-being. Approaches to ending the practice must be rights-based, comprehensive and have girls at the centre.
Our member GUFASHA GIRLS FOUNDATION in Kayunga is dedicated to creating awareness and sensitizing young people about the benefits of education and the dangers that come with Child Marriage.
Girls who marry young are often denied a range of human rights: many must discontinue their education, face serious health risks from early and multiple pregnancies, and suffer sexual and domestic violence. Agenda 2063, the African Union’s 50-year action plan for development, recognizes that child marriage is a major impediment to regional development and prosperity. Countries lose out on potentially enormous social, economic, and political contributions these girls could make if given the right opportunities from the start.
Its important that efforts are put in to directly reach the girls at the grassroots with Information and services that will enable them to thrive. There is no single solution for ending child marriage but to achieve this goal, African governments MUST commit to comprehensive change that includes a range of measures such as ensuring legal reform and enforcement, access to quality education, and sexual and reproductive health information and services; promoting girls’ empowerment; and challenging harmful social norms.
If all girls were supported to complete secondary school, the level of child marriage would likely fall by two thirds (66%) and if all girls continued to higher education, the level would drop by more than 80&%.
Join the campaign to #EndChildMarriage today by ensuring that girls are in school.
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