by Omowunmi Oladokun
The International day of the Girl Child 2026 focuses on Girl Child, there voices and the challenges that they face. This year theme is: “ End Child Marriage and Invest in Girls Right.
The question at this point is: who is a Girl Child?
A Girl Child is a female human between the age of 0 to 18 years.
ENDING CHILD MARRIAGE IN NIGERIA AND INVESTING IN GIRLS RIGHT.
Child Marriage is any formal or informal marriage where one of both parties are under the age of 18.
United Nations International Children Education Fund research recorded that over 12 million Children are married off in the world yearly in which Nigeria is not an exception.
It is common in Nigeria, most especially in the Northern Nigeria. UNICEF stated that Child Marriage violates the rights and freedom of young girls in the world today. Most especially right to free and compulsory education ( Section 18, Chapter II of the 1999 Constitution )and millions of children are kept in the cycle of poverty as stated in the Child Right Act 2003 of Nigeria.
Section 23 prohibits Child Marriage with a penalty of N500,000.00 and the following could be suggested to end Child Marriage in Nigeria:
1.Creating more NGOs to sensitize the public on the hazard of Child Marriage.
2. Channelling enough (more than 6.1 percent of the national budget into education, in order to make education more basic, compulsory and free).
3.Making more grassroot legislation that prohibits marriage before age 18.
4.Creating Vocational Centres for those that don’t like to go to school. e.t.c.
In conclusion, The importance of Girls Childs Right cannot be underestimated, government must put in there best to ensure that Children are protected from evil in Nigeria today.
#happyInternationalgirlschildday. #October11
