At Current Rates of Reduction, It Will Take Over 100 Years to End Child Marriage in West and Central Africa
NEW YORK (October 23, 2017) – Unless progress is seriously accelerated, it will take over 100 years to end child marriage in West and Central Africa, with far-reaching, life-altering consequences for millions of child brides and crippling impact on the region’s prosperity, UNICEF said today.
A new UNICEF report card Achieving a future without child marriage: Focus on West and Central Africa reveals that, as a result of rapid population growth and high prevalence, even a doubling of the rate of the current decline would not be sufficient to reduce the number of girls marrying each year.
“We need to shake ourselves up,” said Fatoumata Ndiaye, UNICEF’s Deputy Executive Director. “We cannot continue to let so many of our girls miss out on their health, education, and childhood. At current rates, our report shows, it will take over 100 years to eliminate child marriage in the region – how is this acceptable?”
The new projections, released during a high-level meeting on ending child marriage in Dakar this week, aim to bring the spotlight on a region where girls face the highest risk of marrying in childhood.
While the prevalence of child marriage in West and Central Africa has declined over the past two decades, progress has been uneven, and still four in 10 women are married before the age of 18 and, of these, one in three before the age of 15.
West and Central Africa includes six of the 10 countries with the highest prevalence of child marriage in the world: Niger; Central African Republic; Chad; Mali; Burkina Faso and Guinea.
The report also highlights that progress is possible – even in high prevalence countries – when the right mix of strategies is in place, such as empowering girls; mobilizing families and communities to change attitudes and behaviors; providing adequate services to girls at risk and to married girls; and putting in place consistent laws and policies to protect and promote the rights of girls.
Five countries in the region – Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Togo, Ghana and Rwanda – stand out with declines in the practice ranging from 40 to 60 percent over the past 25 years.
Getting girls to school and keeping them there for as long as possible is one of the best strategies to delay child marriage because educated girls are able to develop the skills, knowledge and confidence they need to make decisions about their choices in life. The longer a girl stays in school, the less likely she is to be married before the age of 18 and have children during her teenage years.
“Getting girls to schools should be our top priority,” said Ndiaye. “Not only because it equips girls for life, but it also helps to lift their families, their communities and their countries out of poverty.”
Child marriage, the marriage or union of children under the age of 18, is a harmful practice which violates the rights of children. Child brides are less likely to finish school, and are more likely to be victims of violence and become infected with HIV. When children get married, their prospects for a healthy, successful life decline drastically, often setting off an intergenerational cycle of poverty. Also, child brides often lack the skills needed for employment.
To download the report card Achieving a future without child marriage: Focus on West and Central Africa, go to: https://data.unicef.org/resources/statistical-snapshot-child-marriage-west-central-africa
About the High-Level Conference on Ending Child Marriage
The High-Level Conference on Ending Child Marriage, from October 23-25, 2017 in Dakar, is organized by the Republic of Senegal, with support from a group of non-governmental and United Nations organizations including FAWE, Girls Not Brides, Plan International, Save the Children International, WiLDAF, World Vision International, UNFPA, UNICEF, and UN Women. The meeting brings together more than 180 delegates from 27 member states of the African Union, ECOWAS, ECCAS and the African Union itself to find ways to scale up their response to child marriage. More information at: https://endingchildmarriage.com
About the UNFPA-UNICEF Global Programme on Ending Child Marriage
The UNFPA-UNICEF Global Programme to Accelerate Action to End Child Marriage is turning commitment into tangible action for children. It promotes the right of girls to delay marriage, addressing the conditions that keep the practice in place, and caring for girls already in union. The programme is generously supported by the Governments of Canada, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the European Union. More information at: www.unicef.org/end-child-marriage.
About UNICEF
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) works in more than 190 countries and territories to put children first. UNICEF has helped save more children’s lives than any other humanitarian organization, by providing health care and immunizations, clean water and sanitation, nutrition, education, emergency relief and more. UNICEF USA supports UNICEF's work through fundraising, advocacy and education in the United States. Together, we are working toward the day when no children die from preventable causes and every child has a safe and healthy childhood. For more information, visit www.unicefusa.org.
For more information, contact:
Sophie Aziakou, UNICEF USA, 917.720.1397, saziakou@unicefusa.org