Afghanistan: Child marriage is driven by gender inequality

[Afghan_Beauty]

According to UNICEF, Afghanistan has the 18th highest absolute number (572,000) of child brides in the world.

Are there country-specific drivers of child marriage in this country?

Child marriage is driven by gender inequality and the belief that girls are somehow inferior to boys. In Afghanistan, child marriage is also driven by:

•Level of education: Government data indicates that girls who do not study are three times more likely to marry before the age of 18 than girls who have completed secondary education or higher. A 2017 report shows that when a girl is married off, her sister often has to take on her household duties and consequently drops out of school and becomes vulnerable to child marriage. Even the anticipation of marriage forces some girls to leave school.

•Displacement: A 2015 study shows that internally displaced girls are often married off to older men who are able to pay dowry and support them during times of food insecurity.

•Traditional customs: Child marriage is sometimes used to strengthen ties between rival families and settle disputes – a practice known as baad. Girls have little say in this and often face serious physical and emotional abuse. When they try to escape, they are sometimes arrested for zina (running away) which is seen a moral crime.

•Traditional attitudes: A 2017 study shows that younger, single Afghans in urban areas are much more in favour of girls marrying at an older age, compared with older, married Afghans in rural areas.

•Limited awareness: 2017 studies show that television and radio encourages people to consider delaying marriage for girls. Those relying on shuras (community councils) and mosques generally support marrying at younger ages.

•Family practices: Baadal is a practice whereby a settlement is agreed for girls to be married off within or between families, either before birth or as young as two. This prevents a girl from understanding or negotiating the terms of her own marriage.

•Adolescent pregnancy: Afghanistan has the highest maternal mortality rate in Asia, which is also closely associated with the devastating impact of child marriage on girls.

https://www.girlsnotbrides.org/child...e/afghanistan/