Minister of Gender, Jean Sendeza, has called for joint efforts among all relevant stakeholders in a quest to eradicate child marriages in the country.

Sendeza made the call at the 11th Annual General Meeting of Girls Not Brides Malawi Chapter at Mponela in Dowa.

The 2018-2023 national strategy on ending child marriages launched by the Ministry of Gender in 2018 indicates that the percentage of girls getting into marriages before the 18 year mark stands at 37% from 41% while that of boys involved in early marriages is at 7%, up from 6.2%.

Sendeza said a number of initiatives are in place to try to eradicate early marriages but there is need for collaborative efforts in a move towards zero tolerance of child marriages.

"We are not making significant strides. The percentages are not encouraging. We need to do more," she said.

Chairperson for Girls Not Brides Malawi Chapter, Faith Phiri, said there was need to deal with child poverty first in order to eradicate child marriages.

Said Phiri:"A lot of families are not able to support their children especially in school because that's an alternative for a child not to get married early. But because of poverty and some gender norms, children end up into early marriages."

The meeting that was held for two days had the theme Malawi Invest in Ending Child Marriage Now.