Every minute, 28 underage girls are married. That’s one underage girl every 1.2 seconds. Childhood marriage is a prime example of something that isn’t talked about for all the wrong reasons. Just because it isn’t happening in developed countries doesn’t mean it isn’t happening at all.
According to GirlsNotBrides, 1 in 3 girls in the developing world are married before the age of 18. Niger has the highest rate of childhood marriages, running at 76%. India has the highest number of childhood marriages, at around 26,610,000. If those numbers don’t appear staggering to you, perhaps the motives behind childhood marriage will. Gender inequality plays a large role in it all, as does long lived tradition, however, another issue is poverty. Giving a daughter to her groom means one less expense for her family. Often, investing in a son is seen as a more practical decision.
Not only is this a gigantic problem in and of itself, but the fact that it is seen as a norm in these developing countries makes it that much worse. These girls often leave their education and become pregnant at far too early ages, making pregnancy and childbirth complications a considerable cause of death for girls only between 15 and 19 years of age. According to UNICEF, a child birthed by a mother under 18 has a 60% greater risk of dying in its first week of life than that from a mother above the age of 19.
Obviously, this is a problem that stems from years and years of tradition, but it is more than children becoming parents too early in their lives. Childhood marriage means lack of education and lack of rights for the bride. They’re victim to poverty, abuse and violence, which lasts their entire lives. These young women are kept in the house in order to raise the children, and not only give up their education, their freedom and their health, but sometimes their life. These brides are at higher risks for fistulas (ruptures down there), STIs, anemia and obesity. It’s not like their children are healthy, either- these babies are sick, weak, and often don’t make it out of infancy. Not to mention, due to the lack of domestic rights, they can also be victim to murder.
We need to spread the word, especially throughout developed countries where it isn’t as prominent. Organizations like UNICEF work to fight for children and spread awareness of ongoing issues that tend to be talked about less. Through their website, you can educate yourself, donate, become a worker or donor, and get even more involved. At CARE.org , they suggest contacting members of congress, and they have means for you to do so.
These girls are helpless. They have no means to help themselves. They need you. Help them through these organizations:
