First Lady Rebecca Akufo- Addo
First Lady Rebecca Akufo-Addo and her counterparts from other African countries have taken a strong stand against early child marriages and other socio-cultural practices targeted at women and girls in Africa.
Declaring their stand against the inhumane practices, Mrs. Akufo-Addo and the first ladies from Liberia, Niger and Sierra Leone pledged to end child marriage by intensifying activities aimed at addressing the situation.
The first ladies were speaking at the 2nd Girls’ Summit on Ending Child Marriage in Accra themed: ‘Enough With The Silence’.
The summit and high level discussion featured Gender Ministers and civil society groups from across the continent and technical advisors from Mozambique, Sudan, Zambia and Zimbabwe, as well as girls from across the African continent.
Speaking at the opening ceremony to welcome the first ladies and participants to the summit, Mrs. Akufo-Addo said the high-powered gathering is a clear indication of the importance “the mothers of Africa” attach to issues that affect girls and their commitment to making a difference in the lives of girls and young people.
She was hopeful that “empowering girls is one of the most important things we can do to promote and sustain a healthier and more prosperous society. As we empower girls, they become better positioned to contribute to national development.”
“These two thematic areas fit right into OAFLA’s vision to reduce maternal mortality and improve the lives of women,” she stated and urged participants to “prepare to be challenged, excited and inspired in your work towards ending early child marriage and other harmful socio-cultural practices.”
“We all know the challenges, sometimes tragic that come as a result of child marriage and female genital mutilation. Child brides and girls who have been circumcised have a higher mortality rate from complications of child birth and are at an extremely high risk of developing obstetric fistula,” she disclosed.
Mrs. Akufo-Addo also touched on her pilot project with the United Nations Food & Population Agency (UNFPA) to ensure that young girls remain in school and added that “the success of this project will not only ensure that girls obtain an education, but also reduce the incidence of teenage pregnancies and stop girls from marrying early.”
Charging participants to take up the challenge wherever they find themselves, she stated that “I stand here as the representative of African first ladies and mothers of our nations. We say to our daughters who are attending this Girls’ summit; the movement for change is also in your hands and in the hands of the men and women who stand with you.”
Fatoumata Ndiaye, UNICEF Deputy Executive Director, said the solutions to child marriages are education, improved healthcare system and strong legislation.
She further observed that there although there is a strong socio-political will to end the practice on the continent, the decline in the practice is slow.
Madam Fatoumata, therefore, urged the first ladies and all stakeholders to accelerate activities to change the current trend and reduce child marriage on the continent which has the highest burden of child marriages.
She said without the alternatives of educating the girl child and making sure they remain in school, improving health services and strengthening legal systems that protect children, Africa will not meet the SDGs and ‘The Africa We Want’ targets.
Ghana launched its campaign against child marriages in 2016 and has since developed a 10-year national strategic frame work on ending child marriage with a two-year operational plan.
Translating commitment to action, the country will allocate three per cent of the Ministry of Gender, Children & Social Protection’s budget next year to addressing child marriage in the country in addition to what donor agencies will be providing.
By Jamila Akweley Okertchiri