Ndaba Sibanda

The Dangers of Child Marriages Ndaba Sibanda

Child marriages often occur in remote parts of the country where essential civil service is elusive and perpetrators are rarely brought to justice. Girls typically get married by virtue of pressure from parents, relatives, poverty and a lack of choices and chances. The United Nations estimates that child marriages will cost developing countries trillions of dollars by 2030.

Child marriages are a cancer that is gradually eating away the vital organs of a country. The social and economic make-up of a country is under strain due to unfulfilled dreams of a youthful age group that should be the working class in a country's demography. This then encourages the vicious circle of poverty that children born by mothers bound in such unions find themselves in. Education is key to their personal and professional success and freedom.