Dear friend,

We can all be leaders of the movement to end child marriage.  

Girls Not Brides is a partnership for collective action. We work together towards our collective vision – a world without child marriage where girls and women enjoy equal status with boys and men and can achieve their full potential in all aspects of their lives.

Meet the leaders of the movement.

We know that to achieve wide scale change we need committed leaders paving the way for a better world.

Join us in leading the movement to end child marriage. Share our leaders of the movement video on your social media channels with #IAmTheMovement to make your pledge.

• #IAmTheMovement
• #SomosElMovimiento
• #JeSuisLeMouvement
• #EuSouOMovimento
• # मैंआंदोलनहूं।

We are all leaders of the movement.

In Solidarity,
Girls Not Brides

CHILD MARRIAGE IN THE NEWS

Assam state crackdown on child marriage in India

On 3 February 2023, the police force in the state of Assam, India, announced a state-wide drive to implement the law on child marriage. Reports suggest that 2,000 people were arrested in the first two days, a figure which has since risen to almost 3,000. Opinion is divided on the outcome of these measures, sparking protests from affected families.

Find out more:

• Efficient solutions to end child marriage must go beyond outlawing this practice - Girls Not Brides
• Assam government's drive against child marriage a ham-handed attempt - Vidya Reddy, Sannuthi Suresh, Frontline Magazine

Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Nigeria make a joint pledge to take immediate action to end child marriage.

Read the joint statement here.

Legal age of marriage increases from 16 to 18 in England and Wales

Under The Marriage and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) Act, it becomes illegal for 16- and 17-year-olds to be married, or enter into a civil partnership, even with parental consent. It criminalises arranged marriage for children under any circumstance, and introduces harsher penalties for those found guilty of up to 7 years in prison.
Read the article here.

EDUCATION ROUND-UP

International Education Day (24 January)

Education plays a pivotal role in ending child marriage and ensuring girls can fulfil their potential. Read our blog on 3 ways girls’ education can help end child marriage.

Education Cannot Wait High-Level Financing Conference (16-17 February) 

5 key takeaways:

1. We need innovation – suggestions included online/radio education, safe schools and double shift schools, and the need for accessible materials and translators for children with disabilities in emergency contexts.
2. We need to ensure that we are listening to young people and using their advice to influence politicians’ decision-making, but first politicians need to make those spaces for children and young people to be heard.
3. We need to reform how we think about education in emergencies. We need to convince policy makers that children in crisis are not doomed to being out of education.
4. We need flexible, multi-year funding so we can better respond to emerging crises. We also need innovation in funding, not just in programming.
5. We need to adopt a multi-sectoral approach, linking education to other risks faced in humanitarian crises – protection, health, food (school meals etc). We can’t take education in isolation.

LATEST EVIDENCE AND LEARNING ON CHILD MARRIAGE

Khel Ek Seekh: A handbook of sports-based games and activities to enable facilitators to initiate dialogues on gender with adolescents and youth

Handbook for facilitators using sports-based games and activities to build leadership, communication and teamwork amongst adolescents and youth, while also advancing gender equality. (Available in English and Hindi.) 
Access the handbook

Evidence review: Child marriage interventions and research from 2020 to 2022

Review looking at emerging evidence on interventions to prevent and respond to child marriage and support married girls. Includes key takeaways organised by theme and recommendations for child marriage research, programming, policy, and funding. (Available in English; French and Spanish coming soon)
Access the evidence review

The latest child marriage evidence, working in partnership and research funding landscape

At the end of 2022, the Child Marriage Research to Action Network’s (the CRANK) held its first online global research convening. The three sessions brought together researchers, practitioners, advocates and funders from around the world to take a fresh lens to the latest evidence, working in partnership and the child marriage research funding landscape. Now the CRANK has synthesised the key takeaways and detailed discussion into three easy-to-access briefs – one for each day of the convening. (Available in English; French and Spanish coming soon)
Access the briefs

WE NEED YOUR VOICES!
INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY

As we approach International Women's Day on 8 March, we want to highlight the urgent need to address child, early and forced marriages and unions (CEFMU) as part of the women's rights agenda.

We want to hear your views on how CEFMU contributes to gender inequalities and violence. Share your thoughts with us and be part of our digital IWD campaign!

Let's raise awareness and recognize CEFMU as a trigger of violence and gender inequalities!

CHECK THIS OUT

Normalised and invisibilised: the reality of child unions in Latin America

Alma Burciaga-González, Head of Latin America and Caribbean at Girls Not Brides speaks to EFEMINISTA on the realities of child marriage in Latin America. (Available in Spanish only)
Read the article here

DATES FOR YOUR DIARIES

• 2 March - GTA (gender-transformative approaches) webinar - Lessons learned from Mozambique register here

• 8 March - International Women’s Day - Keep an eye on our channels for a big announcement and 8M Campaign (Latin America and Caribbean region)

• 6-17 March - Commission on the Status of Women (CSW)

• 23 March - CRANK Q1 Research meeting