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Malawi:
Country Is 12th Highest for Child, Early and Forced Marriages in the World
Nyasa Times, 8 December 2021
The First Lady Monica Chakwera has disclosed that Malawi ranks 12th highest contributor of child, early and forced marriages across the globe, with 42 percent of girls getting… Read more »
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Africa:
We Are the Generation That Can End Child Marriage
UNFPA, 14 October 2021
Blog by Dr. Bannet Ndyanabangi, Regional Director a.i. Read more »
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Malawi:
Traditional Leader Orders Chiefs to Dissolve Lockdown Child Marriages
Thomson Reuters Foundation, 26 August 2020
Theresa Kachindamoto said an increase in the illegal practice as well as teen pregnancies during the pandemic had spurred her renewed push to save child brides Read more »
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Malawi:
Girls Rescued From Child Marriage
Malawi News Agency, 1 July 2020
At least 21 under 18-year-old girls are said to have been rescued from forced and early marriages in the area of Inkosi Mkukula in Dowa district. Read more »
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Malawi:
Machinga Council in Door to Door Child Marriage Sweeping Exercise
Malawi News Agency, 17 August 2020
Machinga District Council on Friday started a door to door campaign on families that have tolerated child marriages in Paramount Chief Kawinga and Senior Chief Chamba's areas to… Read more »
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Malawi:
Over 300 Children Withdrawn From Child Marriages in Mzimba South
Malawi News Agency, 7 October 2020
M'mbelwa District Council has withdrawn 363 children from early marriages out of the 380 verified marriages in the district. Read more »
InFocus
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Malawi President Lazarus Chakwera has responded to the demands by the nation's women for harsher penalties against the entrenched culture of sexual violence. He has directed the Ministry of Homeland Security to lead a task force on dealing with the issue urgently. Chakwera issued the directive in a radio address, following an appeal by the Association of Women in Media (Awome), that drew attention to the escalating cases of sexual harassment, which has led to protest action. The president said
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In light of a national campaign in Sierra Leone to reduce child marriages and teenage pregnancies, President Julius Maada Bio's has acknowledged that his government senselessly adheres to a policy that intentionally wastes the potential of many thousands of girls who are expelled from school each year because they are pregnant, writes Elin Martinez and Agnes Odhiambo.
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In multiple countries, customary and religious laws have been found to uphold practices that discriminate against women and undermine gender equality. Customary and religious laws have been linked to high rates of child marriage, decreased female autonomy, and limited access to justice for women and girls. When girls marry very young, they often drop out of school and start a family early. In customary and religious marriages they may not be allowed to make their own decisions about contraception,
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Mwanza Salima, one of Malawi's female chiefs promotes girls' education and has used her authority to eliminate harmful cultural practices, including child marriage. One practice she has help ban is called Gulewamkulu where a man wearing a mask to protect his identity during traditional ceremonies, could choose a young girl to have sex with and he would do that with all the initiates.
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A number of charities are working with the government, local communities and village chiefs to get young women, many of them underage brides, back to school. According to UNICEF, 9% of Malawian girls are married by the age of 15, and one in two by the time they turn 18 years old. In 2017 MPs voted to change the constitution to make marriage before the age of 18 illegal.
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Child marriage remains a problem across Africa (file photo).
