South Sudan's English Daily Newspaper
"We Dare where others fear"

By Simon Deng
The Minister of Gender, Child and Social Welfare in Eastern Equatoria State Jennifer Nabongorika has called on the communities to stop forced and early child marriages across the State.
“We usually talk of ending forced and child marriages, our President has declared ending child marriage by 2030, we hope to end cultural norms such as forced marriage, child marriage and use of the girl child in compensation,” said Nabongorika during the opening of the three-day conference of traditional chiefs in Torit town on Tuesday.
The conference supported by United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) is meant to end harmful cultural practices that perpetuate forced and early child marriages.
Nabongorika noted that traditional chiefs are very close to people on the ground that gives them authority to educate the public on the dangers of forced marriages and early child marriages.
She said that traditional chiefs face challenges in their work, adding that they need to be supported to discharge their duties effectively.
Emmanuel Changun, the Program Specialist for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), said early child marriage impedes the ability of the girl child to be economically independent, thus perpetuating a cycle of poverty.
“According to recent statistics, 52 percent of the girls in South Sudan marry before the age of 18 years; some marry as earlier as the age of 12 years. This practice is severely harmful to young girls, the society and the country at large,” said Changun.
Changun said that early child marriage often marks the end of formal education for girls.
“The lost opportunity for the girl child to pursue formal education contributes to fewer educated women, and is an obstacle to the government’s commitment to equality between women and men in all leadership positions,” he disclosed.
In 2019, South Sudan traditional chiefs met at Palm Africa Hotel in Juba to renew their pledge to end child marriage in line with the 5 –year Strategic National Action Plan on ending child marriage in the country.