Unicef: Erradicar el matrimonio infantil llevará más de un siglo

Fatema,15, sits on the bed at her home in Khulna on 7 April 2014. Fatema was saved from being married a few weeks ago. The local child protection committee members stopped the marriage with the help of law enforcement agencies. One afternoon, Fatema discovered her mother intended to marry her off and that a registrar was due to come to her house that very evening. She was devastated and ran away to a friend’s house within the community. Chondra (one of the members of the community based child protection committee) heard about the case and took Fatema into her house to protect her. When her mother was asked whether she regretted her decision she replied that she was glad the marriage had not taken place but that she had had to consider it as she has very little income as a domestic servant and the dowry being asked of her was very small (Fatema’s mother is a widower). She was not happy about having to marry her daughter off but she felt she had no choice. When Fatema defied her at first she was angry but now she understands it was the right decision and the cash transfer provided by UNICEF will help support her.Fatema is in class 8 at school and she is amongst the top five pupils in her class (out of a total of 110 girls). Science is her favourite subject and she wants to study to be a doctor.

Dakar, Senegal, 23 de octubre de 2017.- Debido al elevado crecimiento de la población y a la prevalencia del matrimonio infantil en África, se tardará más de un siglo en erradicar esta práctica del continente, según un informe publicado hoy por Unicef.

El Fondo de Naciones Unidas para la Infancia subraya las devastadoras consecuencias de estos matrimonios para las novias, además de su nocivo impacto para la prosperidad regional.

“Necesitamos espabilarnos”, dijo Fatoumata Ndiaye, vicedirectora de Unicef. “No podemos seguir permitiendo que tantas de nuestras niñas pierdan su salud, su formación y su infancia”, añadió haciendo hincapié en que las cifras actuales resultan inaceptables.

Cuatro de cada diez mujeres de África central y occidental contraen matrimonio antes de cumplir los 18 años y, de ellas, una de cada tres se casa antes de los 15.

La región alberga a seis de los diez países con mayor prevalencia de esta práctica en el mundo: Níger, la República Centroafricana, Chad, Mali, Burkina Faso y Guinea.

No obstante, el informe -publicado en el marco de un foro al respecto que se celebra esta semana en Dakar- señala que también hay avances. En los últimos 25 años, cinco países (Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Togo, Ghana y Ruanda) han reducido esta práctica entre un 40 y un 60 por ciento.

Nota: DPA/ Foto: www.unicef.org