Archbishop Desmond Tutu has observed that the country has room for improvement in the fight against child marriage.
Speaking during a press briefing in Lusaka today, the Archbishop who is a renowned child rights campaigner and founder of the Girls not Braids, a global partnership to end child marriage said he is encouraged with the efforts of stakeholders in the fight against child marriages in the country but that there is room for improvement.
Archbishop Tutu said it was encouraging to see stakeholder such as traditional leaders taking a leading role in the fight against the harmful practice something he described as unusual for traditional leaders todo in most societies.
“He explained that in the few days that his entourage has been in the country, they have had meetings with most of the stakeholders who included government officials, Traditional leaders, Civil Society Organisations and Religious Leaders among others and that the commitment was impressive.
“We were pleasantly surprised with the extent of commitment from stakeholders to end child marriages in this beautiful country. We have been surprised unlike what is the usual practice your traditional leaders here are in the forefront of the campaign to end child marriage.
“We met with government personnel and Ministers, Traditional Leaders, Religious Leaders, NGOs and the United Nations agencies and generally I have been impressed with the intensity with which Zambia is tackling this,” Archbishop Tutu said.
The Archbishop added that his entourage also had the chance to meet with victims of child marriages and expressed sadness that some victims were married off before they were physically mature to go into marriage.
He noted that there is need to educate society on the dangers of child marriages and encourage girls to spend more time in school as it is more beneficial to both the families and society at large.
He added that he biggest frustration was the distance that children have to cover between their homes and schools which makes it difficult for them to effectively participate in school activities because they are too tired from the walking something he said is not only happening in Zambia but in South Africa as well.
He implored governments in the continent to invest in education as it is key tool for eradicating poverty which is a major contributor to child marriage.
And speaking at the same function co-founder of Girls not Braids Her Royal Highness Mabel Van Oranje said there is need for an integrated approach in the fight against child marriage.
She noted that with the good works already taking place the country, Zambia can become a global leader if the campaign can be sustained and improved on by the campaigners.
She also called for the empowerment of the girl child as well as implementation of laws that sets a minimum age for marriage.
“Ending child marriage requires a comprehensive approach that includes the empowerment of girls, mobilisation of families and community leaders, provision of services and the harmonisation and implementation of laws that set 18 as the minimum age for marriage.
“Change won’t be easy but if all work together, Zambia can become a global leader in efforts to end child marriage and empower girls,” she said.
It’s “Girls Not Brides”! Just a basic research on their website would confirm this.
The “Girls Not Braids” in the article is simply sub-standard journalism!
I’ve always been very disappointed with the low calibre of Zambian journalism – how else does one explain the Girls not “Braids” captioned above?
It has been suggested that to improve the standards of Zambian journalism, there ought to be a degree programme at university level and all journalists should be required to possess a minimum of a university degree with English or English Literature as a core component. Clearly, the journalism diploma at Evelyn Hone College is now moribund.
Tutu has abandoned his grandson, Munashe, of Canada and does not want anything to do with him. Is it not hypocritical that he is speaking on child protection? Shaking my head!
Good to note that our traditional leaders support the “Girls not Brides” campaign. So, if child marriages are no longer encouraged by tradition, then whats encouraging it? Is it lack of adequate careers after tertiary education, so young girls are married off since there is nothing left to do for the rest of their lives? Is it poverty, hence parents chasing lobola “Bride price”? Is it to avoid misbehaviour and unwanted pregnancies? Is it peer pressure? What is it the real root cause?.
who wouldn’t be impressed?