Ending Child Marriage

Highlights

This publication is based on the data from the Ghana Demographic and Health Surveys, the Multi-cluster Indicator Surveys and the Maternal Health Surveys. The analysis in this report provides an evidence-based description of the practice of child marriage in Ghana. It is intended to offer insights into ways that the government and other stakeholders can act to strengthen their approach to ending child marriage. The lessons that emerged include the following:

• Child marriage is often linked with pregnancy, underscoring the need for sexual and reproductive health services for adolescents, including reproductive health education.
• Since the majority of married adolescent girls are out of school, efforts should be intensified to facilitate school re-entry and reach out-of-school girls with training and vocational opportunities.
• The issues facing child brides are multifaceted and require an integrated, cross-sectoral approach to provide interventions aimed at child protection, education, health and social protection.
• Progress in reducing child marriage has been uneven across the country, and accelerated efforts are required in regions with more child brides and in those that have made slower progress.
• Conversely, the regions that have seen the fastest progress can offer lessons on effective measures to end this harmful practice.

Author(s)

UNICEF

Publication date

September 2020

Languages

English