End child marriage and invest in girls’ rights
Child marriage denies girls their childhood, disrupts education, and causes severe health issues like VVF. Investing in girls’ rights is crucial for societ Read More:…
Child marriage remains a persistent challenge in parts of Nigeria, particularly in the north, where cultural, religious and economic factors continue to push girls into early unions despite laws such as the Child Rights Act setting 18 as the minimum marriage age. Advocates have long linked the practice to disrupted education, early and risky pregnancies, obstetric complications such as vesico-vaginal fistula (VVF), and cycles of poverty that limit girls' life opportunities.
The commentary follows this year's International Day of the Girl Child, observed globally on 11 October, whose 2026 theme — "End child marriage and invest in girls' rights" — frames the issue around both ending harmful practices and expanding opportunities for girls. Both Punch and ThisDay use the occasion to call for stronger action from government, communities and other stakeholders, with ThisDay's editorial explicitly urging that "all stakeholders must do more to contain the practice." Neither piece provides new data or specific policy proposals, focusing instead on reiterating the scale of the problem and the moral and developmental case for change.