Child Brides: Stolen Lives of Nigeria’s Girls

Nigeria has some of the highest rates of child marriages in the world. In some areas, particularly the Northwest region, nearly half of the girls in the country are married by the age of 15, often to much older men.

The government has tried to ban marriage under the age of 18 by passing the Child Rights Act in 2003. Federal law, however, can be implemented differently at the state level. To date, only a few of the country’s 36 states have developed provisions to execute the law. Furthermore, Nigeria has three different legal systems operating simultaneously-civil, customary, and Islamic-and state and federal governments only have control over marriages that take place within the civil system. This type of governance makes it difficult to curtail child marriages across the country1. 

The consequences of child marriages are devastating for girls:
“When I was 10 my parents arranged for me to marry in the forest. They pretended it was just a party. But it was a wedding and they sent me away. My mother never told me I was going to be married. They came and took me by force. I cried but it didn't make any difference,” Child Bride, 10 years old2.

Married girls receive basically no education. Only 2 percent of 15-19 year old married girls attend school, compared to 69 percent of unmarried girls1. Lack of education limits girls only to the reproductive roles-submissive wives and mothers. A lack of education also means that young girls lack knowledge about sexual relations, thus denying girls the ability to make informed decisions about sexual relations, planning and family, and most importantly, her health2.

Having children at such a young age is also a serious health hazard. Mothers whose bodies are physically incapable of going through childbirth suffer horrible injuries that leave them physically and emotionally scarred for life. One of the most severe consequences of child pregnancy is fistulas. The Ministry of Health estimates between 200,000-400,000 girls and women are living with fistulas1. Fistula is a condition that leaves girls leaking urine and/or feces and often results in abandonment by partners, family and friends. These girls therefore become stigmatized by their communities and often resort to working in the sex industry as result of being shunned by society.   

Fistula is not the only medical condition that young brides are susceptible to. Young girls are much more likely than unmarried girls to contract HIV from their usually older, polygamous husbands. Married girls have less knowledge about HIV and are less likely to negotiate condom use. They are also unaware that HIV can be passed on from mother to child1.

Despite all these devastating consequences, child marriage still continues to prevail and there is considerable opposition to the law banning child marriage, particularly in Northern Nigeria. This is partly due to families living in poverty who cannot afford to care for their daughters; having notions of morality and honour with a high value placed on a girl’s virginity, and religion. One cleric states that it is difficult to accept banning of child marriages because it is permissible according to religion3.

The way forward is a difficult and challenging path, but a necessary one. A lot can be done to promote later, chosen and legal marriage. Some suggestions include raising awareness of the extent of early marriage and human rights abuse it constitutes; engaging communities through public campaigns, pledges or incentive schemes; and raising awareness for parents, community leaders, and policymakers about the importance and necessity of enrolling girls in schools and completing education.

1“Child Marriage Briefing Nigeria”: Population Council, August 2004. http://www.populationcouncil.org/pdfs/briefingsheets/NIGERIA.pdf
2 “Child Marriage:” Forward: Safeguarding Rights and Dignity. 2012
3 Navai, Ramita. Unreported World: Nigeria Child Brides.2008.

By May el Habachi

No More Child Brides: Fire with Fire

At the end of the class, I can recognize a very shy girl. By teaching for more than five years, I now easily identify girls with Intrapersonal IQs and this girl is definitely one of them. She can write better than any other English classmate of her and she can definitely make up stories to excuse her lateness. I ask her to wait for me outside so that I can talk to her. 
"I want to be a math teacher," says the 17-year-old, her printed green scarf falling on to her lap. "I tell my parents, ‘Do whatever you want, but educate me. Let me go to school.’"

In northern India, where one in two girls is wed before the age of 18, the rate of child marriage is dropping.
Welcome to the front lines of the fight to stop child marriage in a country where nearly half of all girls wed before age 18. The weapon of choice: cash.

Our Daughters, Our Wealth, launched in 1994 by the northern state of Haryana, gives poor families $11 when a daughter is born, and also deposits money into a savings account. If the girl turns 18 unwed, she is eligible to redeem the bond, worth 25,000 rupees (roughly $500, or one third of an average yearly income). The earliest of the program’s approximately 150,000 enrollees turn 18 next year, offering a rare chance to study whether the program offers a solution other states—and countries—can use.

Young brides become young mothers with fatal consequences: pregnancy and childbirth complications top the causes of death among teenage girls, and babies born to mothers younger than 18 face a 60 percent greater risk of dying in their first year than babies born to older mothers. Girls who marry are forced to leave school, a costly loss: World Bank data show that for each year of secondary education, a girl’s future wages climb 10 percent to 20 percent.

The $500 payment is hardly a game-changing sum in India but the program’s designers say the state is sending a message about the worth of girls, traditionally seen as burdens to be fed until they move to their husband’s home, where in-laws benefit from their work.

While economic theory says scarcity increases value, Haryana’s low number of girls is endangering girls—and leading some families to seek earlier marriage for their daughters’ protection.

“Educated people are respected in society,” says 17-year-old Natasha, who is now in the 11th grade and says she wants to study accounting and work in a bank. “It is good to go outside the home and earn something.”

Natasha’s mother is one of many women who never had the chance to study because their families made them wives when they were only girls—an injustice they vow to fight. “I will use the money for her education,” says Natasha’s mother, whose parents arranged her engagement before she had turned 14. “I fought with my parents to stay in school. I don’t want her to have to do the same thing; I want her to have a better life.”

By Elaheh  Zohrevandi

CHILD BRIDE SLAVERY in INDIA

(Picture via SUE LLOYD-ROBERTS, Daily Mail)

Allowing people to marry under the age of 18 is against the UN convention and the practice is outlawed in most countries.

In India, child marriage was made illegal under the Child Marriage Restraint Act passed during British rule in 1929. The Indian government also signed the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, emphasising the right to education and freedom from abuse which the Convention entails.  Despite these laws, mass child marriages continue to take place even today--openly defying the law.

A father from India who married off his 6-year old daughter to a 20-year old boy justified his action by saying, "It's the tradition. Girls are married at a very young age, regardless of the age of their husbands, and they're expected to adjust to the situation." (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-389469/The-illegal-child-brides-India.html#ixzz1gQLWA6dB)  

The practice of child marriage is also common in Niger, Chad, Mali, Bangladesh, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Mozambique, Nepal, Uganda and Cameroon, where over 50% of girls are married by the age of 18. More than 30% of girls are married by the age of 18 in another eighteen countries, mostly in Asia and Africa (UNICEF, Early Marriage, a Harmful Traditional Practice. Statistical exploration, 2005). (UNICEF, Early Marriage: Child Spouses, 2001). (source:  excerpt from an article by Diana Brown submitted to the UN Human Rights Councilon behalf of IHEU and the World Population Foundation on 27 February 2006).

Major Causes of Child Marriages: Poverty and culture

Statistics show that child marriage is most common among the poorest groups in society. Extreme poverty is often highlighted as a major cause for child marriages, especially in Asian and African regions where poor families regard their daughters as a burden. This obvious gender inequality existing in most countries where women are treated as ‘second-class citizens’diminishes the true value of the female gender.  As bride slaves, young girls are treated as chattel, bartered and sold, turning them into literal sex slaves.  Some are even sold into marriage to pay off the family debt.

Culture and tradition also play strong roles in the continuation of such practices. This brings about unwillingness from the authorities to put a stop to the practice continuing to expose young girls into forced child marriages with not even the authorities wanting to help them. These girls end up having no one to turn to for help.  

Consequences of Child Marriage: Health Risks and more

The risk that a girl of 15 or younger will die in childbirth is five times more than a woman in her 20s. Pregnancy is the leading cause of death worldwide for women between the age group of 15-19. Child brides face a higher risk of contracting HIV because they often marry an older man with more sexual experience. Girls ages 15 – 19 are 2 to 6 times more likely to contract HIV than boys of the same age in sub-Saharan Africa. (http://unaskedadvice.wordpress.com/2011/09/14/being-married-as-a-child-causes-mental-illness/ )

Of the 10 million children under 5 who die each year worldwide, two million are in India.

The rate of women dying in childbirth in India is 490 per 100,000 live births, compared with single digits in Europe and the United States. 

Also, many of these child brides become victims of domestic violence. They are also deprived of the education they very much need, to be independent and seek better opportunities to improve their lives. And when the child marriage crosses borders, this can lead to human or child trafficking where the child is forced into a life of being a child bride and slave labourer at the same time. Their situation not only keeps them trapped in their life of poverty but also creates health issues and even death.

However, a June 2011 article on child brides pointed out that child brides exist even in developed countries (Tracy McVeigh, social affairs editor of guardian.co.uk):

•       Rates of early and forced marriage are also high in Europe, with the highest percentages in Central and Eastern Europe where 2.2 million girls have married before their 18th birthday.

•       The highest rates are in Georgia (17%) and Turkey (14%). At least 10% of adolescents marry before the age of 18 in Britain and France.

Clearly, the problem is of global concern and should be addressed.

Taking Action

Jengri from India, a child bride at age 11 and now a widow, transformed herself to being an advocate and voice for children who are bride slaves.

She said, "I thought my life was over but now I have a cause and I have a new life." Her husband,  an alcoholic truck driver and more than 20 years older than her died from an accident  3 days after the wedding. (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-389469/The-illegal-child-brides-India.html#ixzz1eYCvqi4e)

Jengri may be one of the few who didn’t have to suffer years of brutality from her husband as a bride slave. For an 11-year old widow, she went through a rude awakening. But this didn’t stop her from overcoming her harrowing experience. Instead of dragging herself into depression and hopelessness, she changed her view from being a victim to being an activist to champion the cause against child bride slavery. 

Several non-government organizations (NGO) have been established over the years advocating for women’s rights and empowerment to address global concerns including child marriages. In India alone, over 47 women’s organizations exist to address women and child issues. (list of women NGOs can be viewed through: http://www.jagriti-international.org/organizations.asp) 


There is a need to call for global action not only to strictly enact, standardise and enforce national laws on child marriages, but also to address the causes of child marriages and other global problems.

With people like Jengri giving a voice to those who cannot speak, and a global awareness resounded on the issue, girl children across the world may finally look forward to a life that their well-to-do counterparts enjoy.


Contributed By: Lylin Aguas

The Woman Is A Girl (Story of Child Brides) Part 2

Not every marriage lasts forever, but early marriage has lifelong consequences for girls.

Every day, teenage girls are forced into marriage with older men without their consent. And if the marriage goes wrong and they run away from their marital home to seek help from their mother and father, they are frequently rejected.

Once, there was a girl with small dreams. And later on there was a woman who had big dreams but life was short and hopes were shattered, punches were strong and bones easily scattered.

There are several things about marriage that a girl should feel before knowing. Things like that need for being held, that urge to call the guys name or even that white dress; yes that requires its own time. But many girls don't get the chance to feel any of those. Sayeh was only six when she was forced to marry her 54-year-old husband for a small amount of money offered to her parents; a man twice her father's age. For him it was like he had bought the wife and the daughter in one. She had her first abortion before even knowing what pregnancy was. "A living thing inside me?" was what she first told her neighbor when she explained it to her. She forgot about the pain and cried of shock instead. "World is such a cruel place, I'm goanna change this hell!"

Karim had a heart attack before even getting to see his child. Experiencing death of the one whom you've spend half of your short life with can be damaging but having dead bodies in yours is even worse. Long story short, Sayeh committed suicide on her 12^th birthday. Not a big surprise to me.

The narrated piece is not fictional and I'm not proud to be the one telling you this but there are more than many girls all around us who are sentenced to marriage which in my point of view is as scary as being sentenced to death. There are even more than many men in their 50s who choose their last wives as girls. I'm going to tell you why some men marry children.

Married men, who pursue young girls, are not after love, they are after conquests. They may be successful or have powerful positions but they are in some ways insecure. They are out to prove they are still attractive and there is no better way to do that than to win the adoration of unsuspecting young girls. Young girls may be encouraged to marry older men, due to the perception that an older husband will be able to act as a guardian against behavior deemed immoral and inappropriate.

Some believe that older men feel rejuvenated when they marry younger women. On the other hand, it could be a test that a man is still attractive to younger, beautiful women.

Dominant notions of morality and honor are important factors encouraging the practice of child marriage. These are influenced great by the importance placed on maintaining 'family honor' and the high value placed on a girl's virginity. It is considered that shame would be cast on a family if a girl was not a virgin when she marries. Therefore, in order to ensure that a girl's virtue remains intact, girls may be married earlier, in order to ensure their virginity.

From years of dealing with victims of marriage as children, despite the fact that I am not married, I consider myself a married child. I deeply believe that as long as girls are forced to get married before reaching puberty and against their will, and as long as men rule the world of marriage and living with a person as grown up partners, we are all victims of discrimination and uncivilization. In fact, we are all married to the shame of living on a planet that bares such dishonest bond between two human beings.

The Woman Is A Girl (Story of Child Brides) Part 1

"As study after study has taught us, there is no tool for development more effective than the empowerment of women." Kofi Annan, Secretary-General of the United Nations

Among all the issues and Problems related to women, from domestic abuse and social misbehaves, poverty and economic disorders in the society, child marriage shines like a single star in the darkness of life's night.

In the last ten years, about 60 million young women have been married before the age of 18. In developing countries, one in every three girl is forced to get married against their will and in violation of international laws and women's rights. These women –I rather call them Child Brides- grow up with limited education and life opportunities. They often have a life made of poverty, isolation and helplessness.

Child marriage, marriage before age 18, is not limited to one country or continent. It affects almost every country in the world including The United States in which ten percent of the married women are under the age of 18 and it's not surprising to hear that Niger, a West African country, is the country with the highest rate of child marriage.

Poor families have almost no way to support healthy alternatives for girls, such as education, or even to feed and clothe them.

There are social and cultural norms that put pressure on families to marry daughters at young ages. For instance, in Islamic countries like Iran, Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia parents may believe that marriage will ensure their daughters’ safety by preventing premarital sex and out-of-wedlock pregnancy. In traditional societies, older men marry young, virginal girls to prove their masculinity and this culture continues to drive this behavior. In Islamic based cultures, according to the holly book of Quran, The minimum age of marriage for girls is 9 while its 15 for boys. There are no limitations for puberty and self-willingness and this leaves us here with unanswered questions about the right to marry a girl in her childhood whether she wants it or not.

Premature pregnancy and motherhood are inevitable consequences of child marriage. Girls under 15 are five times more likely to die during pregnancy and childbirth than women in their twenties. Even if the child survives, he or she is more likely to suffer from low birthweight, undernutrition and late physical and cognitive development.

It's terribly unsurprising that 55% of the widows are women who married before reaching the age of 18. Dealing with the death of someone three times your age, someone who has played the role of a partner in your life isn't something easy. Unfortunately, 60% of the child widows in developing countries are left alone without having a proper education or a source for supporting their own children because they are no longer virgin and even when they are chosen for marriage, they are not the first choices. Most of them accept being married men's second or third wives just to support themselves and their children financially.

The story doesn't end in the east side of the globe. In African countries the statistics are rarely reliable but yet staggering:  In Africa, 42% of girls were married before turning 18.

These are just facts and numbers while the major act can only be done by the NGOs. To support this idea I point at my own country in which stopping forced marriage and child labor is not a math problem. In these countries, p doesn't equal q.

Changing a society's culture is not something one can do under the law's shadow alone. What I suggest through longtime dealing with labor children and women is handing the issue to Non-Governmental Organizations since the governments in many Asian and African countries can't forget about their unjustified laws and help children who lose a sweet childhood before even getting to feel the real life.

The picture taken by Effat Allahyari, Iranian Photographer, depicts the poverty and acceptance of this phenomenon in a developing country.

This Afghan boy is married and has a daughter. He collects wastes and sells them to feed his family.