Dar es Salaam — THE Tanzania Ending Child Marriage Network has pledged to continue advocating for policy reforms to ensure the legal age of marriage for girls is raised to 18 years.
The statement comes at a time when the Law of Marriage Act of 1977 still permits girls to marry below the age of 18 and in special circumstances, as young as 14 with court approval.
Opening a special youth forum aimed at raising awareness on child marriage and importance of girl’s education in ending the practice in Dar es Salaam on Wednesday, the Programme and MEAL Coordinator from Children’s Dignity Forum, Irene Ernest, said there is need to reform the marriage law and for society to change its mindset to protect the girl child for the nation’s benefit.
“The law still allows a girl to be married below the age of 18. As a network, we will continue advocating for policy reforms to ensure the marriage law is changed, while also raising public awareness on the harmful effects of this practice,” Ms Ernest said.
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She said that the network plans to engage religious and traditional leaders, groups often cited as influential in shaping attitudes that affect legal reforms.
TECMN Coordinator, Advocate Irene Nambuo stressed that marriage comes with responsibilities that require both physical and mental maturity, making it inappropriate for a child.
“Let us be honest, marriage comes with responsibilities. How can you assign such responsibilities to a child who is supposed to play and go to school?” she questioned.
She added that the continuation of such practices contributes to creating a dependent society that becomes a burden to the government and perpetuates poverty instead of reducing it.
Elaborating on the forum, Nambuo said bringing together youth aged between 14 and 24 is part of ongoing efforts to combat child marriage and its effects.
“Our goal is to end child marriage. We have been advocating on this issue as stakeholders, but now we have decided to involve the affected groups themselves to gather their views and see how best to present them to decision-makers,” she said.
She further noted that the forum provides a platform to emphasise the importance of education, as many girls who enter early marriages are those who are out of school.
“We have realised that many girls who marry early are those not in the education system. That is why we decided to create a special forum to promote the importance of education for the girl child,” she said.
According to various reports, a significant number of girls are married before the age of 18, with higher prevalence in rural areas compared to urban settings, driven by factors such as cultural norms, traditional practices and economic challenges.
