The benefit of NGO’s helping victims of forced marriage

Non-governmental organisations (NGO’s) and charities do great work across the world helping those in need. Victims of forced marriage are no exception, and both individuals within forced marriages and those at risk of being forced into marriage are catered to by a wide variety of organisations, such as our partners Save Girls, Self Defense in Nepal, NiceHearts and IDEA Nepal . For an in depth look also check out our articles on Karma Nirvana and IKWRO, two UK based organisations

Some NGOs believe in the benefit of educating girls to tackle child marriage and it is also a way to tackle the cycle of poverty. Poverty can encourage the persistence of child marriage, through the benefit of dowry exchanges for a family when they marry their child off. Education empowers women into roles alternate to just staying in traditional roles such as childbearing and home keeping. Research has shown that the longer a girl stays in school the less likely she is to be married before the age of 18 or have children whilst still a teenager. If all girls have access to secondary education it is estimated that child marriage would drop by 64%, and girls with 12 years of quality education are six times less likely to marry as children. Education also allows skills to develop and allow a girl to make more informed decisions, such as when and who to marry. Therefore, supporting girls to stay in school, as We Encourage aim to do through AI and blockchain technologies, through financial support is also vital.

As well as empowering through traditional education there are also NGOs that empower people at risk of being forced into marriage, through educating them on forced marriage and creating safe spaces and support networks. This makes sure that victims and potential victims know that they are not alone and can access help if needed.

Families can also be empowered and educated in the consequences of child marriage through community work, increasing the chance that girls are valued and not married off. Many charities engage in communities to enhance and strengthen efforts to end child marriage. For example, Girls Not Brides is a global partnership of 13000 civil society organisations committed to ending child marriage and enabling girls to fulfil their potential. By working directly with and empowering communities, organisations are able to find flexible, effective solutions that are location specific. This reduces the social acceptance of forced marriage and thus has a longer lasting impact than efforts that do not work in tandem with a given community.

Other charities amplify the voices of those at risk of, or in, forced marriage through advocacy and lobbying by campaigning to local and national governments, attempting to influence laws and bringing bills to governments. These campaigns can include aiming to increase the legal age of marriage and marriage registration, criminalising forced marriage or increasing the effectiveness of current laws.

Girls are benefited through all of these programs, which aim to enrich their lives and encourage the dissolution of child marriage in all forms. Eventually child marriage will be considered an inacceptable practice, both socially and legally. It is these NGO’s and charities that are leading the way in this change. Particularly, as mentioned, education-based organisations have a phenomenal effect on a girl’s life, in terms of empowerment and the probability of a girl being forced into marriage.

Yet there is still more to be done. Despite efforts, lobbying persists as some countries have not criminalised forced marriage or have not sufficiently raised the age of consent. 12 million girls are still forced into marriage a year, and in areas of conflict and disaster these numbers are likely to heighten. But all progress is good progress, social change takes time and it is a long-term project to change ingrained notions within communities.

We Encourage would like to praise everyone for the work done so far, may we all work to eradicate forced marriage and the negative effects it has on those involved. These individuals deserve better.