Child Marriage, A Social Problem.

Look After Her...

An Article On Child Marriage.

Marrying off a young girl to an older man is fast becoming a norm in our society.  This is one major abnormality that is eating deep into the Nigerian system and if not corrected will affect Nigeria in so many ways as a nation and even individual statesmen.

Personally, I believe there are few things we are getting wrong in Nigeria and its really taking its toll on our dear Nation. This is the 21st century and there are certain things we need to change especially in our culture. We can't continue to act like we are in the stone age. A quote by George Bernard Shaw says 'Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything'

 

It has always been my wish to address Child marriage because whenever I see that a young girl is married off to an older man, I get this bitterness within me, It saddens me because I understand these girls aren't the one making the choices and they don't have any clue as to what they are getting into. This is Child Abuse.!

Based on a study, 44% of girls in Nigeria are married before their 18th birthday and 18% are married before the age of 15...unbelievable right?

UNICEF also published that "Nigeria has the 3rd highest absolute number of child brides in the world 3,538,000 and the 11th highest prevalence rate of child marriage globally". A very disturbing statistics it is because the girl child doesn't have full knowledge and understanding of what she is getting into. 

Child marriage is most common in the North West and North East of Nigeria where 68% and 57% of women aged 20 - 49 was married before their 18th birthday. Child marriage is particularly common among Nigeria's poorest, rural, households and the northern part.

Let's take a look at why these parts of Nigeria developed so much interest in Child marriage:

Poverty: The crisis going on in North Eastern Nigeria has rendered more than 2 Million people homeless since 2016, hence, this has caused many families to face extreme famine and poverty, leaving them with no choice than to marry off their daughters as a means of survival. Families also subject their daughters to early marriage if the groom is considered influential and rich; they see Him as a ladder of upgrade for their family.

Parent's Ignorance:  These parents don't understand that their children can have careers and still have a happy marriage, they also don't understand that consent is very important when it comes to taking serious life decisions as everlasting marriage.

Lack of Education: Some parts in Nigeria don't believe in female education, according to them, once a girl has attained a particular age, it is needless for her to attend school again as they value educating the male child more, thereby subjecting the female to early marriage. In Nigeria 73% of women who don't have a formal education were married before 18, compared to the only 9% who had completed higher education. Further education is almost impossible for some girls who have no choice but to depend on their husbands for the rest of their lives. Sad.! 

Religious and Ethnic beliefs: Some religious and ethnic group take marrying a girl off at a young age as a norm because they believe it reduces promiscuity. Wrong!

Child marriage is not a good thing and that cannot be overemphasized, let's see the EFFECT of child marriage:

Early Health Complications: Many of the girls who fall victim of this don't have a ready reproductive system and once they are forced into marriage and early sexual intercourse, they begin to have health complications, sometimes as worse as death during childbirth. Child brides are also often unable to negotiate safer practices as the groom is considered the ultimate decider and are therefore at a higher risk of contracting HIV and other sexually transmitted infections.

Psychological Problem: A girl child who is subjected to early marriage is vulnerable to many things.  She’s young, innocent, very immature and isn’t mentally ready for what she’s being exposed to, this act alone might cause her to develop some psychological issues that will affect her.

Deprivation of Education: When a girl is married off at a young age, it means the education of the girl has come to an end, this is the case for many girls. She’s made to focus solely on her marriage and children…Pathetic init?

It is even sadder that their dreams and aspirations are altered too. No matter how little, everyone has dreams, for these girls, once married, they must forget theirs to live a life they never chose.

This is why we should End Child Marriage!

In other to progress as a country, for the girl child dream’s to be restored. In other to stop risking the health of the Girl Child, we need to collectively End Child Marriage Now…How?

Creating Awareness on the negative impact of Child Marriage and making people know the advantages of educating the Girl Child.

Imposing stringent Laws and ensuring proper and strict adherence and execution.

Poverty Eradication: Poverty remains the biggest problem in Nigeria, one of the major ways to end child marriage is to eradicate poverty. Once poverty is taken care of, child marriage will be a thing of the past.

Investing in The Girl Child: The locals need to be enlightened that the girl child can do all what men can do, she deserves to go to school and pursue her dreams, she needs to be told that influence does not only belong to men. She needs to be told that she can get to any level she wants. The girl child needs to be aware of her abilities and the society must come together to help her actualize her goals.

Protect the girl child, speak up for her, look after her…She has rights too!

Lets spread the word!

Kunmi Lawal.

References:

legit.ng

girlsnotbrides.org

unicef.org