By; FUNMI ADERINTO, Kaduna
The Kaduna State Government, led by Governor Nasir Ahmad el-Rufai has reiterated commitment to end issue of child marriage by improving access to education, food security and economic growth.
The acting Governor, Hadiza Sabuwa Balarabe stressed this when she declared open a two-day experience-sharing workshop on child marriage in the North West in Kaduna on Tuesday.
Balarabe said that child marriage is one of the key challenges in the North that has enormously affected education, health, including sexual and reproductive health.
According to her, child forceful marriage is considered as a harmful practice and a violation of human rights.
She said there is need to change the narrative and make progress towards ending child marriage in the country but most importantly, in the zone.
“This will require that we terminate the root cause of the problem which has been proven that it will evolve, leverage and harmonise instrument of law; and will need the good tending of leaders, all socio cultural institutions and stakeholders,” she said.
The acting governor said that the state government recognised the root of the problem which made it to prioritise human capital development to address it.
She further said that the government was made to offer the first 12 years of education free and compulsory for all in the state to tackle the challenge.
She noted that many girls in the North West often get married before the age of 18, which calls for concerns.
”Some are between 15 years of age and taken out of school and become pregnant with complications due to long labour and undeveloped pelvic,” she pointed out.
In her remarks, Commissioner for Human Services and Social Development, Hajiya Hafsat Baba, said that child marriage, whether directly or indirectly, is a global issue and harmful practice to the society.
Baba advised that children under the age of 18 should not be pushed into early marriage, adding that the practice brings a devastating end to their childhood.
”Child marriage is often the result of entrenched gender inequality, making girls disproportionately affected by the practice.
”Ending child marriage will boost efforts towards achieving the goals by improving access to education, encouraging economic growth, enhancing nutrition and food security, as well as improving maternal and child health,” she said.
The commissioner said that girls who married before 18 years are more likely to experience domestic violence and less likely to remain in school.
She said there is the need to enable programmes, laws and structures that ensure that young girls avoid early marriage, stay in school and decide for themselves whether and when to marry.
“We must first identify and address the root causes of this harmful tradition and identify opportunities for change.
” We must rally all the stakeholders, children, young people, parents, community leaders and governments to understand why we need to end the harmful practice and learn how to involve children, particularly girls in processes that will empower them to claim their rights,” she said.
Speaking also, Programme Coordinator, Global Innovative for Women and Children, Aminu Babangida, said they are working closely to see how child marriage would be tackled in the community.
According to him, it is important to call the major stakeholders to intervene and address child marriage issue.
Also, the representative of the United Nations Population Funds (UNFPA ) of adolescent health, reproductive health and youth development specialist, Bahijjatu Garko called on other states to emulate Gov. Nasir el-Rufai to end child marriage through compulsory and free education for young girls.
She said that one in every nine Nigerian is a young girl, while Nigeria Demographic Health Survey 2013 reports that nationwide 19.5 per cent of adolescent girls are married before the age of 18.
According to her, child marriage may seem to be driven by poverty, but the continued practice perpetuates the vicious cycle of poverty that is said to drive it.
She noted that a girl child bride is often denied education as such, her job prospects diminished and left more vulnerable to poverty and exclusion.
In her submission, Hajiya Binta Kasim, a representative from Katsina State said that the fight against early marriage has been in existence for a while, but implementation has been the major challenge.
Kasim said that if most concerns raised regarding early marriage is implemented, a lot of problems would have been solved.
She said that Katsina State has a lot of young girls who opted for early marriage due to insecurity which made them orphans.
At the end of the event, the acting Governor, Dr Hadiza Sabuwa Balarabe declared open the two-day experience-sharing workshop on child marriage in the northwest.
The workshop, which was held at Bafra Hotel Kaduna, is being attended by the Commissioners of Women Affairs and Commissioners of Education from the seven North Western states of Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto, Jigawa and Zamfara.
