Chieftaincy Ministry, UNFPA collaborate to end child marriage

The Ministry of Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs and the United Nations Populations Fund (UNFPA) are collaborating to fight against child marriage in some communities in Ghana.

This was made known when the Country Representative of UNFPA, Wilfred Ochan paid a courtesy call on the Minister for Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Stephen Asamoah Boateng in Accra.

Asamoah Boateng said that young people, especially girls are the foundation of every society.

“They need government support and the right environment to grow into future leaders that will push the country rather than allow societal norms to cut their dreams short,” he noted.

He indicated that the initiative was a step in the right direction as chieftaincy disputes had blinded the country from focusing on other norms and cultures which needed to be discarded in society.

He gave the assurance that the ministry would meet with key stakeholders to map out strategies to curb this culture while ensuring the need for a policy that would address it and prevent society from engaging in child marriage.

On his part, Wilfred Ochan said as a result of child marriage, girls who are supposed to be in school are married off at an early age.

“This ends their future dreams making them either become a grandmother before they turn age 30 and in some cases, the girls develop…fistula since their organs are not well developed to make babies,” he added.

He emphasized that the collaboration was important because UNFPA believed that the custodians of the land hold a lot of power and could influence change in the communities hence, the need to involve them to curb this social vice while promoting the good ones that need to be projected.