Description

When a young girl becomes a bride, the consequences are lifelong – for the girl, for her children and for her nation. Every year some 15 million girls around the world are married as children. Over 700 million women alive today were married or entered into union before their 18^th birthday. Child marriage cuts across countries, cultures, religions and ethnicities. If there is no reduction in the near future, the total number of women married as children will grow to 1.2 billion by 2050.

Child marriage is rooted in gender inequality and in the low value accorded to girls, and is exacerbated by poverty, insecurity and conflict. It denies girls their rights and undermines numerous development priorities. Ending child marriage will require long-term, sustainable action across many different sectors. A robust legal and policy framework for preventing child marriage and supporting married girls should be the cornerstone of government efforts to address the practice.

Parliamentarians are uniquely positioned to shape, advance and implement such a framework, within their countries and beyond. They can lead the development of relevant legislation and policies, set the political agenda as opinion leaders on ending child marriage, pass budgets, monitor implementation, and ensure accountability for both national and international commitments, including government accountability to target 5.3 of the Sustainable Development Goals to end child marriage by 2030. They can guarantee the voices of citizens are heard, particularly the voice of the girl child, in order to mobilise political will and commitment to end child marriage.

Yet, parliamentarians are often overlooked as a group who can make change happen. This toolkit aims to provide concrete examples and recommendations on how interested parliamentarians can take action. It also promotes collaboration with vibrant civil society organisations working on the issue. We encourage you to join the global movement to end child marriage and trust this revised toolkit will help you take action. We believe that by establishing a fruitful and long-term partnership with committed parliamentarians, we can work together towards a world where girls and women enjoy equal status with boys and men.

We wish you every success in your endeavours to end child marriage and to realise the rights of every girl.