Empowering Girls Through Education: A Key Strategy to Prevent Child Marriage
With the highest incidence in Asia, Bangladesh has the fourth highest percentage of girl child marriage before the age of 18. Poor economic and social conditions, inadequate education, illiteracy, and religious superstition are all blamed for this problem. Bangladesh had the highest rate of child marriage (59%) as of 2020, which is considered a violation of children’s rights and discrimination against women.
Child marriage has detrimental effects on health, especially reproductive health, as it increases the risk of preterm birth, low birth weight, morbidity, and mortality in children, as well as malnutrition in both mothers and children. According to studies, women between the ages of 15 and 19 are twice as likely to pass away from complications related to pregnancy and childbirth as women between the ages of 20 and 24. As of 2018, Bangladesh had one of the highest rates of adolescent fertility, with 82 births per 100 women. Child marriage is anticipated to raise this rate, further endangering social and economic growth.
Premature birth and child marriage are strongly correlated with education, with the prevalence of preterm birth being more than twice as high among uneducated women as it is among educated women. The nation won’t be able to end child marriage without increasing girls’ retention in education. According to studies, delaying child marriage for a year results in an additional half-year of education.
According to recent studies, encouraging females to pursue higher education has the potential to increase their access to high-quality healthcare facilities, employment opportunities, and health education. This is especially true in rural areas. Appropriate interventions, such as gender responsive budgeting and enhanced budget allocation with subsidies in health and education, can be put into place to decrease girls’ rates of child marriage and early motherhood. In addition to overcoming the difficulties associated with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and graduation targets for Least Developed Countries (LDCs), this would make it possible to turn girls into human resources and integrate them in Bangladesh’s development process.
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for women’s and children’s health, education, a good life, decent work, and gender equality may not be realized until child marriage and adolescent motherhood rates stop rising, despite a gradual decline in child marriage rates from 66% in 2014 to 59% in 2020. Reducing child marriage is a requirement for socioeconomic advancement, reaching the SDGs, and LDC graduation in order to accomplish these goals. To keep Bangladesh on pace to achieve the SDGs by 2030 and LDC graduation by 2026, it is vital to examine current policies for any necessary revisions and focus intervention initiatives.
Source: The Daily Observer
