Curbing child marriages

Prolonged closure of schools coupled with Covid-triggered economic hardship is increasing the number of child marriages in Bangladesh. According to BRAC's research, child marriage has increased by 75 per cent across the country due to joblessness of parents during the Covid-19 pandemic. A study conducted by the Save the Children shows that around 200,000 girls in South Asia were at risk of child marriages in 2020, while an additional 2.5 million girls may fall victim to child marriage by 2025.

While child marriage has increased around the world, the situation is particularly worrying for a country like ours where the prevalence of child marriage is usually quite high, and the pandemic has just made the situation worse. If we look at these child marriages, we will find it out that poverty, loss of earning opportunities, and uncertainty over the future mostly led to the families marrying off their daughters during the pandemic.

While dealing with child marriages, we must concentrate more on creation of mass awareness against child marriages and their adverse impacts on girls' life. Enforcement of law should also be ensured appropriately. Social safety net programmes need to be strengthened for the low-income groups. Teachers, representatives of local administration, religious leaders, and people of all social strata have to come forward to protect girls from becoming the victims of child marriage. The other underlying factors of child marriage must also be addressed by the authorities concerned to stop this practice once and for all.

Apurba Das

Student of Faujdarhat Cadet College

Chattogram

[email protected]