Mr Issifu Mumuni, the Assembly member for Damweo community, a suburb of Bolgatanga Municipality, Upper East Region, has called for concerted efforts by all stakeholders to end Child Marriage.
He said child marriage violated the rights of the girls involved including, their right to education, reproductive rights, employment, freedom of movement, and their right to consensual marriage.
It also perpetuated the cycle of poverty as the girls involved mostly lacked skills or jobs to earn a living, support their family and contribute to national socio-economic growth.
“Although it has declined significantly in recent times, the practice is still ongoing in some parts of the region and needs everyone, including Law Enforcement Agencies, Religious leaders, community leaders, and Parents, among others to work hand in hand in order eliminate the act”, he said.
Mr Mumuni was speaking in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) at a sensitization durbar on child marriage organized by Planned Parenthood Association Ghana (PPAG) in the Damweo community.
The sensitization forum formed part of PPAG’S awareness creation project dubbed ‘Child Marriage-Free Community Alert Campaign’ which is being supported by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) under the Global Programme to End Child Marriage.
Ms Martha Atule, the Project Officer for PPAG, Upper East Region, said the project had started a Child Marriage-Free Community Alert Campaign aimed at mobilizing community support to end the incidences of forced and early marriages.
She said the campaign aimed at creating awareness about the consequences of child marriages and how community members could join forces to effectively end the menace.
As part of the awareness campaign exercise, a symbolic flag was mounted and pledge cards were signed by community members to affirm their readiness to end child marriage.
“The flag would be hoisted at half-mast whenever there is a new case of child marriage and this would prompt stakeholders to take immediate action,” Ms Atule said.
Globally, it is estimated that about 12 million girls get married each year. In Ghana, one of out every five girls marries before their 18th birthday and one in 20 girls is married before her 15th birthday.
Source: GNA
