For many girls, school represents more than a classroom. It is a pathway to opportunity, independence and a future. But for thousands of girls in Nigeria, that path can be abruptly interrupted by child marriage; BLESSING OKOLA reports.
Nigeria’s fight against child marriage has made progress but it is far from over. The challenge now is not only to keep girls from being married at young ages, but to address the poverty, lack of education, and social norms that continue to make child marriage an option for families.
For millions of girls, the right to childhood remains a promise yet to be fully delivered.
The consequences often extend far beyond the marriage itself. Girls who marry early are more likely to leave school, lose opportunities to develop skills and become exposed to health, economic and social vulnerabilities that can shape the rest of their lives.
This is why advocates and development partners say ending child marriage must go hand in hand with protecting children and keeping girls in school.
‘No child should be left behind’
Speaking at a technical working group on ending child marriage in Nigeria, Faith Osarctin of Save the Children stressed that no child should be left behind in the country’s efforts to tackle the practice.
Osarctin said children need protection, survival and quality education, all of which are threatened when girls are married before they are ready.
“At Save the Children, we understand that children need to be protected. They need to survive, and they also need to have very good education,” she said, noting that child marriage threatens these fundamental needs.
For Save the Children, the response cannot end with policies or declarations. Preventing child marriage also requires addressing the conditions that push girls out of school and leave families with limited choices.
The organisation is implementing projects aimed at ensuring girls remain in school, and increasing school enrolment among children across five northern states. Such interventions are seen as critical because keeping girls in school can help delay marriage while giving them the knowledge and skills needed to build more secure futures.
Osarctin expressed hope that the technical working group would produce practical recommendations and a clear way forward for accelerating efforts to end child marriage.
Let’s ensure that children remain in school – CSOs
The Country Director of Girl Effect, Boladale Akin-Kolapo, and the organisation’s Programme Lead, Kosi Izundu, agreed that every girl deserved the opportunity to grow up safe, healthy and empowered to determine her own future.
Izundu said child marriage in Nigeria was not simply a question of stopping girls from marrying before the age of 18; it is also about creating the conditions that allow them to remain in school, develop skills, build confidence and have a meaningful say in the direction of their lives.
According to her, preventing child marriage must be accompanied by efforts to ensure girls have access to education, knowledge, skills and opportunities that enable them to make informed decisions about their lives.
“Every girl deserves the opportunity to grow up safe, healthy, and empowered to determine the course of her life,” she said.
The challenge, however, is deeply rooted in the circumstances surrounding girls and their families. Poverty, social and gender norms, limited educational and economic opportunities, as well as weaknesses in protection and support systems can all increase girls’ vulnerability to early marriage.
‘Sustained and coordinated actions required’
Izundu stressed that these interconnected drivers could be addressed through isolated interventions, and that they required sustained and coordinated action involving government, development partners, civil society organisations, communities and the girls themselves.
This is where the National Technical Working Group becomes important. The platform provides an opportunity for stakeholders to bring together evidence and experiences, identify interventions that are working and strengthen areas where gaps remain.
Izundu also described the development of a governance framework for the Technical Working Group as an important milestone in improving coordination and accountability in the national response to child marriage.
A clear governance structure, she noted, could help define the roles and responsibilities of stakeholders, improve coordination and strengthen accountability while creating a more coherent national response.
But beyond structures and policies, the real test will be whether these commitments translate into changes in the everyday lives of girls.
Girl Effect said its approach placed girls and communities at the centre of change. Through its work on ending child marriage, the organisation supports community-led efforts to change harmful social norms, strengthen girls’ skills and agency, and create environments where girls can stay in school, access opportunities and participate in decisions about their futures.
For Izundu, government leadership remained critical. Effective approaches must be reflected in policies, systems, budgets and routine programmes if progress is to be sustained.
At the same time, she said communities, parents, traditional and religious leaders, young people and girls themselves must remain part of the conversation.
“Their voices, aspirations, and experiences must continue to shape our policies and programs,”
For Nigeria’s girls, ending child marriage should ultimately mean more than reaching the age of 18 unmarried. It should mean reaching adulthood with the education, confidence, skills and freedom to choose what comes next.
UNICEF urges stronger collaboration
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) called for stronger collaboration among stakeholders to accelerate efforts to end child marriage in Nigeria.
The UNICEF Representative, Faith Nyam, who spoke on behalf of UNICEF Chief of Child Protection, Ms. Nathalie McCauley, said the organisation remains committed to working with the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and other partners to ensure that girls are protected from early marriage.
Nyam said UNICEF was a global lead on efforts to end child marriage alongside the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), adding that the organisation has been working closely with the Federal Government to strengthen interventions aimed at protecting girls.
She said UNICEF had also supported the Technical Working Group (TWG) on Ending Child Marriage over the years by helping to bring relevant partners together to coordinate efforts against the practice.
According to her, ending child marriage requires collective action because the challenge cuts across several sectors and cannot be addressed by one organisation or institution alone.
“This job is not just for one person; it is for all partners and it is multisectoral as well,” she said.
Nyam described the gathering as “an important opportunity for stakeholders to strengthen their commitment and develop actions capable of producing meaningful improvements in the lives of girls across Nigeria.”
FG reaffirms commitment
Speaking on Nigeria Reviews Strategy to End Child Marriage, and Targets Holistic Development of Children, the Director of Economic Services, Federal Ministry of Women Affairs, Musa Aliyu Musa, said the federal government had reaffirmed its commitment to ending child marriage in Nigeria.
He said the revised national strategy was designed to strengthen coordination and address the social, legal, educational and economic factors that expose children, particularly girls, to early marriage.
Musa said the government’s approach goes beyond ending child marriage to ensuring the total well-being and development of the Nigerian child.
He said the strategy provides an enabling environment for the holistic development of children through policies, projects and programmes aimed at improving their quality of life and enabling them to contribute meaningfully to national development.
According to him, child marriage remained one of the developmental challenges, affecting children in Nigeria, making it necessary to develop strategies, strengthen institutional structures and promote social, legal and educational reforms that would support a sustainable national response.
He recalled that the African Union launched a continental campaign to end child marriage in 2014 and called on member states to establish measures and mechanisms to tackle the practice.
Musa said that in response to the continental campaign, the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs established a Technical Working Group on Ending Child Marriage in Nigeria on July 27, 2015.
He explained that the technical working group later played a key role in the launch of Nigeria’s campaign to end child marriage on November 29, 2016, alongside the first National Strategy towards Ending Child Marriage, covering 2016 to 2021.
He said the first strategy was developed to provide a roadmap for stakeholders and guide efforts to tackle the practice, which poses serious risks to the lives, education and development of children.
However, Musa noted that the implementation of the first strategy faced challenges because it did not contain action plan, making it difficult to determine the financial requirements for implementing its recommendations.
He said the revised strategy had addressed the gap by introducing an action plan covering 2024 to 2030.
According to him, the revised strategy was being implemented through a strengthened Technical Working Group, which is currently co-chaired by UNICEF, following the previous co-chairmanship arrangement with Save the Children.
He emphasised that the revised strategy sought to integrate and strengthen sectoral mechanisms for ending child marriage, build national capacity for research and knowledge sharing, improve programming and promote policies, legislation and programmes that protect children from the practice.
‘It threatens girls’ education, health, development’
The Director, Child Development Department, Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, Mrs. Marima F. Shaibu, described child marriage as “a major violation of children’s rights” and a significant barrier to the education, health, protection, empowerment and overall development of girls in Nigeria.
“Child marriage remains a significant violation of the rights of the child and a major barrier to education, health, protection, empowerment and the full development of girls,” she said.
Shaibu disclosed that part of the focus of the meeting would be the development of a proposed Governors’ Manual and the review of the technical working group’s terms of reference.
She commended development partners, donors, civil society organisations and other stakeholders for their continued support and commitment to protecting and advancing the rights of the Nigerian girl child.
Shaibu stressed that sustained political commitment and collective action were required to accelerate progress towards ending child marriage in Nigeria.
We’ll improve access to justice – Minister
The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Olasunkanmi Fagbemi, SAN, represented by the Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Justice, said the Ministry was considering efforts to end child marriage central to protecting children’s rights and advancing justice in Nigeria.
The Ministry noted that child marriage violates Nigeria’s legal and international commitments, including provisions of the 1999 Constitution, the Child Rights Act of 2003, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child.
But the ministry also acknowledged a reality that has become increasingly evident in the fight against child marriage: having laws on paper does not automatically translate into protection for girls in communities.
“Law alone is not enough,” the minister said, stressing the need for stronger coordination, reliable data and political will to translate legal commitments into action.
This is particularly important in a country where child protection responsibilities cut across different levels of government and where laws and their implementation can vary across states.
The ministry reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the harmonisation and diversification of child protection laws across states, improving access to justice, and strengthening accountability for violations against children.
It also pledged continued collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and other stakeholders in the campaign to end child marriage.
