Bongo: Traditional Leaders Collaborate to End Child Marriage in the District

The paramount chief of Bongo Traditional Area in the Upper East Region of Ghana, Naba Baba Salifu Atamale Alemyaarum, who champions the campaign to end child marriage in the Bongo District, is collaborating with 15 divisional chiefs, 27 sub-divisional chiefs, and 28 Queen Mothers, along with various stakeholders, to combat this issue.

NanaHemaa  Awindor, chief director of the Obaapa Development Foundation, has been leading initiatives against child marriage in Ghana since 2016. With support from UNFPA, the Ministry of Chieftaincy Affairs, and the Ministry of Gender and Social Protection, she organized capacity-building and awareness training for all Queen Mothers and sub-divisional chiefs in the Traditional Area.

According to data from the Ghana Statistical Service, around 80,000 girls aged 12 to 17 in Ghana are already married or living with a man. The 2021 Population and Housing Census (PHC) indicates that 79,733 girls in this age group are in unions, with 25,999 being of Junior High School age (12 to 14 years). The regions with the highest percentages of girls ever in union are North East (13.0%), Savannah (10.9%), and Northern (10.6%), all exceeding the national average of 4.0%.

Despite free and compulsory universal basic education, nearly a quarter of a million girls (244,731) aged 6 to 14 have never attended school. The Northern Region has the highest number of these girls (73,516), followed by Savannah (27,930) and North East (22,857). These regions also have the highest percentages of girls not currently attending school, with Savannah leading at 40.2%.

In the national ranking for girls aged 12 to 17 ever in union, the Upper East Region is ranked fourth with 5,848 girls, while the Northern Region leads with 14,031 girls, followed by the Ashanti Region (9,767) and Greater Accra (6,063).

In an exclusive interview, Naba Baba Salifu Atamale Alemyaarum emphasized the importance of the Obaapa Development Foundation’s timely intervention. He noted, “Child marriage in the Bongo District has been at high rates in the past. Recently, the situation has improved, but if care is not taken, it could escalate due to the poverty challenges our people face.”

During a recent workshop, the participants discussed numerous issues, highlighting the need for education and awareness rather than force. Naba Salifu stated, “We need to embark on a census transition drive and proper education.” He added that his Traditional Area, in collaboration with Queen Mothers, sub-divisional chiefs, and Assembly Members, is poised to form a committee to educate the community on the importance of stopping child marriage.

He further explained, “We don’t want to employ force. We want to let the people understand that it is in our own interest to stop child marriage. We will draw a tentative program so that we do not have conflicts of interest.” He proposed that if persuasion fails, the traditional council would work with the assembly to enact bylaws, supported by security forces, to enforce these measures.

Richard Obeng Boafo, Head of Religious Affairs at the Ministry of Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, representing the minister, expressed commitment to ending child marriage in the Bongo Traditional Area. He urged continued education and advocacy to address the root causes of child marriage, such as poverty and cultural practices, and called for the Bongo Traditional Council to enact bylaws to combat sexual and gender-based violence, including child marriage.

Source: mywordfmonline.com/Gaspard A Adongo