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Bangladesh ranks eighth on the list of the 10 most child marriage prone countries in the world. And at the top among the countries of South Asia. The child marriage rate in Bangladesh is now 51 percent. Although this rate has decreased slightly compared to previous years.
According to a 2011 survey, 52 percent of girls in Bangladesh were victims of child marriage. But in 2016, the rate increased to 59 percent.
This information has been collected in the report published by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) on the situation of child marriage in Bangladesh this Wednesday.
A virtual event was organized to mark the publication of the report entitled “Ending Child Marriage: A Profile of Progress in Bangladesh”. The Minister of State for Women’s and Children’s Affairs, Fazilatun Nesa Indira, and other officials from the Secretariat joined. Claudia Kappa, UNICEF Senior Advisor, presented the report at the event.
The report says that although the trend of child marriage in Bangladesh has decreased by more than 90 percent since 1980, the rate is still much higher. Currently, 51 percent of women between the ages of 20 and 24 are married when they are still children. This has turned the country into a country of 36 million ‘babies’, who were married before their 18th birthday. About 30 lakh crore of them were married before the age of 15.
Most of the child victims of child marriage live in poor families and villages, according to the report. The dropout rate for female students who are victims of child marriage is 4 times that of single female students. Five in 10 married people give birth before age 18 and eight in 20 before age 20. The report also said that progress in reducing child marriage was greatest among the wealthy and upper classes.
The Dhaka division leads the country in terms of child marriage. 9 million women have married in this section. Chapainawabganj ranks first among the districts. The child marriage rate in this district is 63 percent. Child marriage is lowest in Chittagong district. The child marriage rate in this district is 39 percent.
The UNICEF report called for strong action to end child marriage in Bangladesh by 2030, saying it was a priority for both the Bangladeshi government and UNICEF. However, efforts are needed to bring about more change in Bangladesh to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030 and the National Goals to End Child Marriage by 2041. To meet the national target, the rate of child marriage will have to be at least 8 times faster than in the last decade and meet the SDG target 16 times faster.
UNICEF Deputy Representative in Bangladesh, Vira Mendonca, said: “Together we must challenge harmful practices and stop child marriage. These human rights violations are having devastating consequences for individuals and society, depriving children of their childhood and limiting the opportunity to choose the life of their choice. Now we must invest in protecting girls’ right to life and education and reducing their violence and abuse. “
“The current Kavid-19 epidemic now threatens to reverse the progress of child marriage,” the report said. This is one of the reasons that UNICEF urges governments around the world to prioritize the safe reopening of schools.
Abul Hossain, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Women’s and Children’s Affairs and project director of the Multisectoral Program to End Violence against Women, said: “Girls should be encouraged to return to school to improve their knowledge and abilities. Girls who receive an education even after secondary level have a much lower risk of becoming ‘babies’, even if they live in villages and are members of poor families. That is why education is our most important tool to change society and create equal opportunities for girls ”.
More than half a million girls at risk of child marriage worldwide: Save the Children
According to a report published by Save the Children on October 1, more than half a million girls around the world are at risk of child marriage this year due to Kavid. By 2025, 25 lakh more girls will be at risk of child marriage due to Kavid. This is the largest increase in child marriage in the last 25 years. South Asian girls are at higher risk of child marriage. This year, more than two lakh girls in the region are at risk of child marriage.
Save the Children added that more than a million girls around the world are at risk of having children this year. Childbirth can be one of the leading causes of death for people ages 15-19.
The report, titled ‘Global Girlhood 2020: Cavid-19 and the Crisis of Progress’, found that Cavid-19 has had a devastating effect on gender equality.
Inger Ashing, executive director (CEO) of Save the Children International, said the epidemic meant that many more families would become poor. Amid growing economic uncertainty and food insecurity and the risk of violence and oppression, many parents will marry their children to much older people. These marriages will undermine the rights of girls and increase the risk of complications, including depression.
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